Crown and Key
by Keryth
Summary: A crossover story. Lara Croft, Buffy and company, and He-Man and She-Ra. A serious attempt, not comical. All 20 chapters plus prologue and Epilogue. Reviews wanted


**Crown and Key**

**By Sandra and William Johnson**

**Prologue**

The musty scent of death hung thick in the air of the sightless cavern. Heavy shadows caressed the mildewed stonewalls. Near the roof of the cave, a single match was struck; one perfect oval of light. Nimble fingers used it to light a single lantern and tie it to the end of a silken cord. Then, the rope dropped silently into the seemingly bottomless hole. As it hit the bottom, the owner of the lantern tied her rope to a large boulder and slowly began her descent into the foul smelling earth.

Having reached the cavern's bottom, the young tomb raider tossed her long unibraid back over her shoulder and pulled her map from the belt of supple black leather that was wound tightly around her waist. Using the light of her lantern, she peered cautiously at the ancient hieroglyphics that appeared on the wall. She slowly turned her head left, and then right; taking in the appearance of the tomb. She noted that the cavern had two tunnels. Consulting with her map, the woman advanced towards the entrance to the right.

Holding her lantern in front of her, the young brunette moved silently through the otherwise blackened tunnel. Rats, spiders, and the other inhabitants of this place scurried along at her feet. She let out a startled cry as she heard something crunch under her hiking boots. Looking down, she saw what appeared to be the skeletal remains of some type of bird. Examining the walls, she slowly translated what was written there.

_"Who so ever enters the tomb of the ancient hoard shall taste of its power through centuries past and future." _She read aloud. As the words were uttered, the tunnel burst into light at one end. A glowing, golden oval of light burned beyond the treasure she had come to seek. Standing on a pedestal near the oval was the Crown of the Morganna the Misbegotten; a perfect golden circlet with three huge diamonds supporting a golden spider with a large ruby for its' body. Carefully moving forward, the woman gently lifted the circlet from its stand. She braced herself for the inevitable trap that was sure to be set off upon removal of the crown. Nothing came.

"That was too easy." She said aloud to herself as she turned to walk back the way she came.

"Guess again." A rough voice behind her said. The woman whirled around. Standing in front of the circlet was a woman, easily six feet tall with long blonde waves that cascaded to her shoulders. Her glittering blue eyes were frigid, and the temperature of the room dropped six degrees upon her entrance. She flashed Lara a flirtatious yet sinister grin, the torchlight shining off her ruby red lips.

"Where did you come from?" The woman casually tossed.

"Another time. You will know me well, Lara Croft, now, before, and in the future as well." The woman smiled. As she did, rays of ice shot from her eyes. Lara knew then who she was facing, Morganna herself. Nimbly, Lara dove to the right, avoiding the icy rays. Rolling back to her feet, the tomb raider quickly whipped the twin pistols from their holsters on her hips and opened fire on Morganna. The bullets ricocheted off an invisible barrier only inches from Morganna's face. Lara swore as Morganna's girlish laughter filled the cavern.

Quickly, Lara tried a different tactic. Holstering her pistols and avoiding another blast of ice from Morganna, she quickly tossed her lantern at the woman. The glass shattered, sending kerosene everywhere.

Using the light from the glowing oval to guide her, Lara reached into her pocket for her matchbook. As she did, a large, oval pearl flew through the gate and landed near her feet. Without thinking, Lara grabbed the gem, the crown, and her matches. She struck a single match and tossed it over her shoulder. The room was consumed by fire as she ran, melting the ice from Morganna's eyes.

A hissing sound issued from the cavern. Lara ran and shimmied up her rope as the flames spread down the cavern she had just run from. Using the rest of her strength, she shoved the boulder. Surprisingly, it moved rather easily and settled itself in the hole that she had previously dropped into.

With a sigh of satisfaction, Lara climbed down the mountainside and made her way back to her jeep. As she slid into the drivers seat, her mind passed over the events that led her to this desolate spot. Less than 3 days ago, the map she followed had arrived on her doorstep, with a note from her long deceased father. The note was short and concise, explaining how Lord Croft had learned of the map during his time with the Illuminati, and how they desired to own the crown themselves. It went on to tell Lara that the Cavern of the Horde could only be accessed on a precise day and time, and that if he was unable to do so himself, then Lara was to follow the map and recover the crown before others who were after it did so. Lara had the note's authenticity verified by MI-6 itself, and once she knew her father had indeed sent it, she immediately began preparations for the trip. Now she had the Crown, but knew next to nothing about it.

On the other side of the portal that had opened upon Lara's entry into the Cavern of the Hoard, a skeletal face awaited Morganna's return. His large muscular body was covered head to foot in Blue fur, revealing only his face.

As his mistress returned from her trip, the man bowed at her feet. "I trust that all went well, my lady?"

"Of course it did." She replied, the ice in her eyes melting as she considered the fire of her victory to come. "The crown was successfully removed. Thus, the portal from Eternia and their world is unlocked. Testing if it actually works is another story."

"The Shadoweaver attempted to send the princess' sword through, but was partially unsuccessful."

Morganna raised one eyebrow. "Partially?"

"The sword itself remained, but the stone from the center is missing."

Morganna's gaze darkened. "It doesn't matter. Return the sword to the princess' bedchamber this night, before she awakens and notices it's absence. The portal to Earth has been opened, and therefore we can capture the key to the dimensions. By absconding with it, there is no limit to our power." She exited on a breeze of icicles. The man's skeletal face turned up into remnants of a smile as he laughed maniacally.

On the other side of Eternia, a woman known as The Sorceress was awakened from her sleep with visions of shadows and the smell of death. As she sat up in bed, drenched in sweat, the images from her dream faded. Turning about, she noticed the golden glowing oval coming from behind her wardrobe.

"The portal!" She gasped. The Stone of Earthly Magic had been returned to it's home. Opening that long locked and guarded door between worlds could only mean evil. Desperately, she attempted to contact the possessor of the stone through telepathy, but her mental abilities were blocked. That could only mean that the person who held the pearl also held the Ruby of Eternia and her magic was being blocked by its powers.

Reaching out again with her mind, The Sorceress called upon the one man she knew who had a chance of rectifying this terrible situation.

"What is your destination, Lady Croft?" The pretty young customs agent asked Lara from behind the counter.

"A small town outside of Los Angeles, I believe." Lara said as she idly flipped through her black leather address book, looking for a specific name. Finally she came across it; Rupert Giles.

"Sunnydale, California."

"Very Good Miss. Enjoy your trip." The young girl said cheerily as she stamped Lara's passport. Collecting her things, Lara considered what it would be like to see her old History tutor after so many years. "I wonder if he's still searching for his chosen one'; his vampire slayer. Funny how he once thought it was me..." Lara allowed her thoughts to trail off as she climbed aboard the plane and settled herself in for her long flight, her last thoughts before sleep took her dwelling on whether her old tutor might know the Crown's secrets, when all her vast archaeological tomes could not.

**Chapter One**

"I thought California was supposed to always be warm." Lara asked herself as she walked through the chilly streets of Sunnydale. When she had landed at Sunnydale Airport, she attempted to contact Giles at his home, but received no answer. She had then taken a cab to what was left of Sunnydale High School, thinking that maybe he was working late. The dismal remains of the school confirmed to Lara that Mr. Giles was indeed no longer a teacher. After asking around for about half an hour and after a perusal of the local phone book in a conveniently located telephone booth, Lara discovered that he now ran a store called "The Magic Shop". She asked directions and headed out for a walk to the store.

Lara had not considered the time difference, though. As she walked to the shop, night had fallen. She wasn't worried, though. After all, she was Lara Croft, English Lady and Tomb Raider. She often walked the streets of London alone at night and handled any trouble that came her way. This was a sleepy little town in Southern California, not even a suburb. What was the worst that could happen?

"Hey there, girlie, are you lost?" A male voice with a heavy English accent asked behind her. Lara turned to face him. "No, but I am new in town. I can guess you are, too." The man was tall with slicked back bleached blond hair. He wore a beaten up leather trench coat, white T shirt, and a pair of black jeans. Lara smiled slightly, thinking, "This guy looks like Billy Idol"

"I've been around." He casually replied. "Don't you know it isn't safe for a pretty thing like yourself to be walking the streets at night?"

A slow smile spread across Lara's face. "I think I can take care of myself." She said. Unconsciously, her hands went to the hilt of the twin pistols she carried in holsters around her hips, which were currently hidden by the Gray Duster she wore over her tight fitting clothes. The man shrugged, his shoulders causing the supple leather of his jacket to ripple over his skin.

"Suit yourself, dear. But if you come across anything that those two metal friends you're sporting" he lightly rested his hands on the guns at her hips and smiled oily, " can't handle, don't hesitate to call for help. The name's Spike."

Lara's hands moved to quickly remove Spike's hands from her hips. "Don't worry. I can practically guarantee I won't be screaming your name any time soon." Lara smiled sweetly, then turned away from the man and headed further down the street. "Figures, the first guy I meet in America has to be another smooth talking Brit." She said to herself as she spotted the sign that read "The Magic Shop". Lara approached it swiftly.

Suddenly, Lara found herself face down in the pavement, with an extremely heavy weight across her shoulders. She pushed herself to her feet, sending the object crashing into a pile of trashcans. Turning to face it, Lara noticed that it was a man. He slowly rose to his feet and smiled. His face was ringed with bumps across his forehead and he had two sharp fangs jutting from his mouth.

"Like to play dress up here in the States?" Lara asked. The man laughed. "You wish." he retorted as he made a lunge for her. Lara darted right, avoiding his grasp and crashed into another person who resembled her first attacker.

"Is this some kind of gang, or do you guys have a Klingon fetish?" She asked as they both made a dive for her. The first man growled and grabbed her by the hair. Pulling her close, he exposed the flesh of her neck. Lara brought her knee up into his groin, and the man doubled in pain. Running back, Lara pulled her pistols. "Stay back!" She called.

"Or what?" Her second assailant taunted. He started towards her. Lara squeezed the trigger and fired. The bullets slammed into the man's body, sending him sprawling. To Lara's amazement, the man slowly regained his feet.

"You can't kill something that's all ready dead." The man taunted. That's when Lara knew Mr. Giles had been right; there _were_ vampires in America, and she was face to face with two of them.

"Looking for a date?" A female voice asked to Lara's right. She turned her head and saw what appeared to be the typical California blond airhead standing there. "I mean, it really isn't fair to all the other girls, with both you guys fighting over this nice lady here." She kept walking.

"Get back! You don't know what they are!" Lara told her. The blond kept coming closer. "How about you dance with me?" She asked the vampire who was standing in front of Lara. Without another word, the blond let fly a high kick that caught him under his jaw. Lara heard his teeth click together as the man flew back several feet. The other vampire had regained some of his strength and came at her from behind.

"I'm sorry, but my dance card is kind of full." The blond said as she flipped him easily over her shoulder. Reaching into the bag that was idly slung over her shoulder, the blond pulled out two long pointy sticks. "Catch!" she called to Lara as she tossed one in her direction. Lara quickly holstered her pistols and caught it, just as the blond plunged the other stick into the heart of the fallen vampire. Following her lead, Lara crossed to the apparently unconscious one. She watched as the vampire the blond had slain turned to dust at her feet.

The man in front of her jumped to his feet, taking Lara by surprise. With a slow smile spreading easily across her face, Lara held up the pointy end of her stake. Too late, the vampire realized that he had misjudged her distraction and impaled himself upon her stake, right through his heart. He vanished in a flash of dirt.

Lara turned to the blond with a smile of appreciation, idly brushing dust from her clothes. "Was that what I thought it was?"

"Depends on what you were thinking." The blond quipped as she gathered her things together in haste.

"I thought it was a vampire." Lara replied, an edge creeping into her voice.

"Then you thought right." The blond replied as she started to head off.

"Are you The Chosen One?" Lara called after her. The blond stopped in her tracks and slowly turned around. "What makes you think that?"

"You are." Lara said with conviction. "Maybe you can help me. I'm looking for an old friend."

"Sorry, but if you're friend is undead, I probably killed him." She said as she started off again.

"No, it's not that." Lara jogged after her, insulted that she had to chase after a girl a few years younger than she who had probably just saved her life. "He was my History tutor when I was a child. His name is Rupert Giles."

The blond froze and whirled around. "You know Giles?"

"I take it so do you" Lara paused. "Do you know where I can find him?"

"Can I trust you?"

"Can _I _trust _you?_" Lara asked. The blond let out a sigh. "I suppose you've got me there." Lara shrugged and extended her hand for an introduction. "Lara Croft; Tomb Raider."

The blond took her hand and shook it firmly. "Buffy Summers," she replied, "Vampire Slayer."

"Interesting title; 'Vampire Slayer'." Lara commented as Buffy led her around to the back of the Magic Shop and down the street towards Giles' home.

"No more interesting than Tomb Raider'." Buffy replied as she and Lara stepped off the curb and headed down the street.

"Isn't that his shop?" Lara inquired.

Buffy shrugged, "Well, what's left of it anyhow"

"What happened?"

Buffy smiled, "Just your usual, every day apocalypse. You coming?"

Lara shook her head, her own world saving experiences flashing through her mind, and followed the young woman down the street to a rather unassuming house.

"Everyone is inside." Buffy said. "If you don't really know Giles, we'll find out soon enough."

"You're not worried about that?" Lara asked.

Buffy smiled grimly. "I have the most powerful witch on Earth inside along with a former Watcher and a complete arsenal. I highly doubt you'll be getting out alive if you're not who you say you are."

"Good point." Lara said as she attempted to digest the information Buffy had just described. "I'm still getting used to the fact that there are vampires. Why wouldn't there be witches as well?"

As she pushed open the door, Lara saw him. Seated at the counter was Giles, exactly how she remembered.

"Was everything okay Buffy?" He asked, not looking up from the thick book he was reading.

"Yeah." She replied as she motioned towards Lara. "But the innocent outside seems to be looking for you."

Giles wearily lifted his head and turned to face them. He dropped the book to the floor with a loud clatter, recognition lighting his eyes. "Lady Croft!" he nearly whispered.

Buffy looked curiously at Lara, thinking, "_Lady Croft_???"

"Hello, Mr. Giles." She replied. Giles crossed the distance between them and enveloped her in a bear hug. "Lara Croft, I haven't seen you in nearly ten years. What are you doing in the States? Why didn't you call and let me know you were coming?"

Lara held up her hands, "Let's slow down a minute, okay?" She took a deep breath. "I would have called, but what brings me here is not something you can easily discuss over a telephone. As to what that may be, well, that's the Big Mystery. I received this map that my father sent me and since the note attached to it hinted at a sense of urgency, I followed it without my normal amount of preparation. What I recovered, was an ancient crown. I'm pretty sure it's magical in origin. Seems that since the debacle with The Triangle, I've gained a sense about these things. But, even though it's former owner is quite famous, neither Bryce, nor I could find anything on it in any of my books in my library. Not even in the writings of Evelyn O'Connell, Doctor Henry Jones Sr., Doctor Henry Jones Jr., or even in the writings of Dr. Daniel Jackson. All I found was _nothing._"

Giles looked at his former student, concern on his face, as well as curiosity. Not only about what brought Lara to America, but also about this Triangle she referred to. However, it was late, and Lara looked exhausted.

"Lara, you look exhausted. How about we discuss this in the morning, after you've gotten some sleep?" Giles replied. "I'll make you a reservation at "

"Don't bother." Buffy interrupted. "Lara, why don't you stay with me? Everyone else does. It's really no imposition for a friend of Giles."

Lara looked a little taken aback at the sudden change in Buffy's tone from possible rival to possible friend. "Do you have the room?" Buffy smiled. "As long as you don't mind sleeping on the couch, I do."

Lara smiled back, "Sure, why not. Besides, this way I can find out more of this _Slayer_ business."

"And you can tell me what the hell a _Tomb Raider_ is" Buffy retorted.

Giles sighed. "I only hope Sunnydale can survive the blooming friendship of Lara Croft and Buffy Summers." He said quietly. The women laughed together for the first time as Giles guided Lara by the arm into the living room.

"I'm just going to call Xander and let him know I'm going to be later than I thought. He's on Dawn duty tonight." Buffy said as she disappeared into the kitchen.

"Dawn duty?" Lara asked.

"Her younger sister." Giles replied. "Now, tell me. How was your first impression of Sunnydale?"

Lara smiled slyly. "It was actually rather funny. Before your slayer rescued me from those disgusting vampires, I had been offered a rather cocky escort by a quite attractive Brit. Then again, I always did have a thing for Billy Idol."

"Billy Idol?" Giles asked, his usually passive face drawing in concern. "Was he by chance, tall, with platinum blond hair and wearing a very old leather jacket?"

Lara's jaw dropped. "Yes, he called himself Spike." She paused, considering Giles expression. "How did you know?"

"I guessed he was going to return sooner or later." Giles muttered. "Lara, don't mention that part of your evening to anyone else. This Spike is quite dangerous. He disappeared for a while, but apparently now he's back. I'd like to deal with him on my own, without getting Buffy and the others involved."

"Mr. Giles, you don't need to explain anything to me. After how well you treated my father and encouraged him after my mother passed away, I feel as if I owe you one, to coin one of your American sayings. I promise not to mention it."

Giles breathed a sigh of relief. "Thank you Lady Croft. And you are old enough now to call me Rupert. Mr. Giles makes me feel like I'm my father's age."

Lara laughed merrily at that remark. "On one condition," she smiled. "You must drop this 'Lady' business and call me Lara."

**Chapter Two**

"_Another house guest?"_ Dawn Summers thought to herself as she stumbled down the stairs for breakfast the next morning. Fast asleep on the couch in the living room was a young woman about a few years older than her sister, with long dark hair that spilled across the white pillowcase like a black ribbon. Almost unconsciously, Dawn found herself being pulled towards her. She was unnaturally beautiful, with striking features that would have made even Faith jealous; Faith, who until this very moment was easily the most beautiful woman Dawn had ever clapped eyes on. At least, she was when she wasn't trying to kill her sister. The woman's high cheekbones and full lips, however, did nothing to hide the fact that under her pillow was a pair of guns. Guns made Dawn nervous; they had ever since Tara had died. A large duffle bag with the initials L.C. embroidered on it lay at the foot of the couch with a pair of worn hiking boots next to it. But Dawn could not tear her eyes away from the guns. She shivered as she took in how the woman was sleeping. She lay on her back with her face to the ceiling on an angle; in exactly the same position Buffy had found their mother laying dead on that same couch.

"_Don't think about that; don't think about Mom."_ Dawn scolded herself. This woman looked nothing like her mother, and yet, something about her felt very much like home to Dawn. She couldn't put her finger on it, but it was there. There was a familiarity that Dawn couldn't resist. As if in a dream, Dawn reached her right hand out towards the blanket that covered the woman's shoulders and began to pull it back.

"Dawnny, come in here for a second." Buffy's voice staged whispered from the kitchen. Snapping instantly back to reality, Dawn ran her fingers through her waist-length, poker straight brown hair. She tiptoed through the foyer, being extra careful not to make too much noise and wake the sleeping stranger. Dawn entered the kitchen and was surprised to find not only Buffy there, but also Giles and Willow Rosenberg.

Come to think of it, Dawn wasn't all that surprised. The gathering of these three people at this early an hour of the morning could only mean one thing; Apocalypse. Plastering a smile on her face, Dawn reached for the carton of milk in front of Willow.

"So, is it time to save the world again?" Dawn asked cheerily as she poured the milk into a glass. "I've been training really hard, haven't I Buffy? Maybe this time I could help you out by doing more than just hitting the books."

Her sister's smile could have melted an iceberg. "Don't worry, Dawn. It's not the end of the world...yet." Buffy joked as she affectionately ruffled her little sister's hair.

"Oh, it's just I saw the lady asleep on the couch, and then with Willow and Giles both being here so early on a Saturday I just assumed things were getting all bad and dreary again." Dawn paused. "So. Who is she?" she asked.

"A friend of Giles." Willow said as she got up from the table, carrying with her a thick book. "Her name's Lara Croft, and she's an adventurer; kind of. She found this really neat crown that she thinks might be magic, but she doesn't know anything about working magic. So..."

"That's great and all, but it doesn't explain why she's sleeping on the couch." _Or why I feel so close to her._ Dawn took her glass of milk to the table and sat down, Buffy in toe.

"She got attacked by some vamps last night..." Buffy began.

"Really?" Dawn asked. "What did she do?"

"Well, I believe she, uh, shot them. With her guns." Giles answered, pushing his glasses up onto the bridge of his nose. "Lara never was one to listen when someone reasoned with her."

"It's okay, though. I mean, not everyone is from Sunnydale. We can't expect her to know that bullets don't make a vampire go, well, all poofy like." Willow said as she continued leafing though the book. Dawn could see now that the cover was written in a language she had never seen before, but the pictures seemed to be of artifacts. The only writing she recognized seemed to be the author's name, written on the spine of the book, one G. Gygax.

"Anyway, when I found out she was looking for Giles, and didn't have a place to stay, I offered to let her sleep here. Everyone always ends up here sooner or later, so I figured that we should be in on this one from the beginning, should things start to look like they're heading into familiar territory." Buffy finished.

"So how can I help?" Dawn asked as she slurped up the last of her milk and headed for the sink with her empty glass. Buffy smiled at her sisters enthusiasm, so unlike her own at times.

"There's really not too much to do now, sweetie. But you could keep Willow company while she's going through that tome." Buffy paused "Oh! And you can look things up on the Net if needed."

Seeing the look of utter boredom on Dawn's face, Giles came to her rescue. "I believe Lara will need someone to show her around town, without getting into the rather unsavory areas." He stated. "I'd do it myself, but Anya and I rather have our hands full with the Magic Box in shambles-"

"Sorry Giles." Willow whispered, tears forming in her eyes. Buffy placed a comforting hand on her arm. "It's okay Will." She began in a soothing tone. "Nobody expects you to be fine. Everybody deals with grief in their own way."

"Yeah, but most people don't try to destroy the world because they're hurting. They don't dismantle their friends business..." her voice trailed off. Willow looked down at her hands, the tears spilling over. "Giles, can you ever forgive me?"

The tall, stuffy Englishman rose from the table, crossed the kitchen, and enveloped Willow in a tight hug. "There's nothing to forgive, Willow." He began. "Well, there is, but actually you did me a great service. I was getting bored with being a shopkeeper anyway. What you need to do is forgive yourself."

"Everyone knows you're hurting, Willow. I miss her too." Dawn said as she pushed a lock of Willow's red hair behind her ear. "But it'll get easier." She placed one of her hands on top of both of Willow's, which were clenched so tightly together her knuckles were white. "Sometimes I miss Mom so much I think it will never go away. Sometimes, I even forget she's gone. Like, when I do really well on a test at school, I still think 'Wow, Mom'll be so proud of me'. Then I remember she's gone, and it all comes back. That's when it's the toughest. But the rest of the time, I think about what she would want me to do. I know she wants me to be happy and do all those things that I miss her the most during. But that's what makes them worth doing in the first place."

Willow looked up from the counter, summoning all her inner strength as she did so. She looked from Dawn to Giles to Buffy, and knew that it would take time but eventually she would be okay. She would never stop missing Tara, but things would get easier. She swiped at her eyes and smiled.

"The kid's smarter than she looks." Willow joked, giving Dawn an affectionate wink before continuing. "I am lucky to have all of you in my life. Thank you."

The girls hugged Willow from both sides as the kitchen door flew open. Xander Harris bounded in, carrying two large bakery boxes.

"Have no fear, Doughnut Guy is here!" He announced as he gently set the boxes on the tabletop. "I got two dozen fresh from the oven, and I managed to hit everybody's favorites." He paused for dramatic effect. "And yes, there are even a couple of bear claws for the stuffy Englishman who doesn't like sprinkles."

"We should probably see if our guest is awake before diving in." Buffy excused herself as she went into the living room to wake Lara. Xander turned to Dawn and waggled his eyebrows suggestively.

"Guest?" He asked. "Would this guest be of the female persuasion?"

"She's a friend of Giles'." Dawn said as she opened one of the boxes and inhaled the sugary aroma.

"Oh, well, then she's probably old and boring and not interested in having fun of any kind; including doughnuts. Guess that means there's more for...uh, uh, uh..." Xander's voice trailed off when he turned around to face the entrance to the foyer, a jelly doughnut halfway to his mouth. A monumental event occurred that morning. When he caught his first glimpse of Lara Croft, Xander Harris was struck speechless. He stared at the attractive brunette with the hip hugging shorts and tight shirt who had the sweetest smile he had ever seen on someone who just woke up.

"Good morning." Lara began as she strode into the kitchen. "I trust you all slept well."

Buffy pushed her way past the still gaping Xander and led Lara to one of the vacant chairs at the table. "Sorry about having to put you on the couch, but we're a little short on room at the moment. "

"It's perfectly all right. I slept like a baby." Lara smiled as she looked at the two boxes of doughnuts on the table. "Are there any jelly ones left, or should I serve up your shirt?" She directed this question to Xander, who, while he stood gaping at her didn't even notice the blob of jelly that had leaked from his doughnut and landed square in the middle of his white shirt.

"N-no, I think there are a few more." He said, blushing to the roots of his hair.

"Lara, this is Xander Harris, Willow Rosenberg, and my kid sister Dawn." Buffy said as she pointed to each one in turn. "Guys, this is Lady Lara Croft."

"_Lady?!" _Willow, Xander and Dawn exclaimed in unison.

"I prefer to be called Lara, if that's all right." She remarked rather dryly as she helped herself to the remaining jelly doughnut.

"So, what brings you here from merry old England?" Xander asked, having recovered the power of normal speech. "And how long do you plan on staying?"

Lara smiled as she launched into her tail of the map, the crown, and the vampire fight, omitting only her encounter with the man named Spike, per Giles request. As she spoke, Xander's opinion of the woman only increased.

Giles held his hand out to Lara, "Would you mind if I looked over that letter from your father, and the map he sent you? I may find some things even MI-6 missed"

Lara nodded and pulled the note and map from the back pocket of her tan shorts and handed them to Giles.

"So, what do we know about this Morganna?" Dawn asked.

"According to the research I've done, she was an aspect of a Hell God, though I'm not sure which one, and _may _be the Morganna of the Arthur Legends. She terrorized most of Europe for almost a century, and was only defeated after a, how did that one book put it? 'After a group of brave heroes from across all of Europe and chosen by God had been assembled to defeat the vile Morganna.' Apparently when she was vanquished, her soul was imprisoned in a large stone known as The Ruby of Eternity. The rest of her was imprisoned in what the books call 'a prison where no man can harm her, nor she harm man' whatever that means." Lara finished with a sigh.

"And you said you saw her when you removed the crown from its resting place?" Giles asked with interest. Lara nodded. "One of her many powers were the ability to shoot ice through her eyes."

"Sounds like a big bad is a brewing." Willow said as she put away the milk from the table. "Where do we start? Research?"

"Research." Giles confirmed. He looked from Dawn to Xander. "I have, uh, pressing business to attend to. Who wants to help?"

Somewhere far away, in another galaxy even, the sun was not shining on a little planet called Eternia. A tall, attractive woman of twenty-two, with long blond hair and deep set blue eyes, stared silently out her bedroom window. She wore a red collared leotard over a long-sleeved white blouse. Her legs were bare, except for her knee high red boots; as per the women's fashions of this world. An ancient silver sword sat on her lap as she dangled her feet out the window. She absentmindedly fingered the gaping hole where a large stone was once inset in the center of the sword's blade. She felt at home here, she really did, even though she grew up on another world. If only she hadn't returned to Eternia for her twenty second birthday. If only she hadn't been so careless in that last fight with the Horde, she may not have damaged the sword. It was more precious to her than anything; the sword was her entire identity.

"Hey, sis, don't jump. It can't be all that bad." A male tenor voice said from behind her. Turning back to the room, the woman came face to face with her blond haired, blue eyed and extremely well built twin brother.

"Oh Adam." She said with a smile. "Things never look as bad when you're around."

Adam's eyes crinkled up at the corners when he smiled. "You're not still worried about not being able to---"

"Man At Arms said he was going to see The Sorceress this afternoon and that he'd contact me if she was able to figure anything out." She paused. "Adam, I don't know what I could have done to make that gem come out of the sword."

"Adora, you didn't do anything!" Adam exclaimed. "You said it yourself; you went to bed with the sword at your side, and when you woke up the stone was gone." He pushed his sister's hair out of her face. "If it was there the last time you used it, you didn't do anything to it."

"You're right." Adora said, squaring her shoulders. "There's no use crying over it. It will all work out. I just wish Man At Arms would contact me."

Adam blushed. "Uh, that's kind of why I'm here."

Adora blinked. "Huh?"

"The Sorceress contacted me last night about an urgent matter. She wants to see both of us right away at Castle Greyskull."

Adora leapt to her feet and slid the sword into the scabbard she wore across her back. "Well what are we waiting for? Let's get going!"

The journey to Castle Greyskull only took a few minutes by hover-cycle. Once outside the bluish walls of the ancient Castle, Adam and Adora moved to the entrance.

"Sorceress!" Adam shouted, "We've come as you asked"

As Adam spoke, the drawbridge inside the mouth of the skull shaped entrance opened, and the two entered inside. With a clang, the drawbridge drew up behind them.

"Adam! Adora! It's a good thing you got here so quickly" Adam's longtime friend, Man at Arms, said as the two entered. "The Sorceress has traced the gem down"

Adora's face lit up at that, "She found it? Great! Where do we have to go?" eagerness filled the young woman's face

"She asked me to meet you and lead you both to the viewing chamber. She would have come herself but she's busy keeping the viewing portal open."  
"Let's go then" Adora almost shoved the two men over in her eagerness to find out where the gemstone was.

Man At Arms led the two young people down the corridor, and through a closed oaken door. Inside, shadows leaped on the walls from the light given off by the viewing portal, a shimmering pool of water in the center of the chamber. A woman sat before the shimmering scrying pool, her legs crossed. Her head was covered in an eagle like helmet which led to the feathered cloak that cascaded down her back, barely concealing the very feminine body covered only by a white and blue leotard, similar to Adora's red and white one. Inside the glowing pool of water, two women fought valiantly against several large looking men. One, a brunette with a braided ponytail flowing down her back, pulled two weapons that resembled the blasters Adam and Adora were familiar with. The weapon cracked several times as she fired at one of the approaching men. The other woman, a blonde, carried only two pointed sticks, Adam stared at the blonde for a moment, his eyes fixated on her as she tossed one of the sticks to the brunette, "My god, she's beautiful," he whispered. His sister elbowed him in the side to keep him quiet.

At the sound of his voice, the woman in the eagle helmet looked up and the vision faded, leaving the room in a dim light, "Ah, Adam, Adora, you made it." The Sorceress said. "I have traced The Stone of Earthly Magic to its destination. Ironically, it has found its way to your mother's home world."

"You mean it's on Earth?" Adora asked, "Then, we can't reach it. There are no portals to Earth."

"Yes, it is back on Earth. However, Adora, there is one portal, that has not opened for centuries. One for which I do not have the key."

"Then how does that help us?" Adam asked skeptically.

"The key to opening the portal already resides on Earth. In fact, the Key itself is in the same location as the Stone. We have but to wait for the Stone and The Key to come into contact with each other."

"But, that could take for ever." Adora asked

"Have faith child, I am preparing to make contact with the one who will bring the Key and the Stone together." As The Sorceress spoke, the scrying pool again filled with the image of the blonde, this time, sleeping soundly with her head resting on her arm at what appeared to be a kitchen table. The image pulled back to show the woman inside the room of a house much like the one Adam's mother described to him many times in the past. As the image continued to pull back, the twins could see a young woman, maybe 16 or 17 years of age lounging in the room and quietly observing the others. The room also contained the brunette from the previous image as well as a lanky young man with dark hair and a perky red head sitting behind a strange gray box, and apparently speaking to someone inside the box. As Adora stared at the image, she realized the box must be some form of primitive computer or communications device.

"Soon, children. Soon the Key and the Stone will meet, and then the portal will open and you must both go through to Earth to retrieve the Stone and to locate something else of great importance. The Ruby of Eternia has also found its way to Earth, and if it should fall into the wrong hands, there will be dire consequences for people everywhere. Observe the people within the pool, both of you, for they can aid you in your endeavors."

The twins focused their attention on the pool as the blond cried out in her sleep; at exactly the same instant The Sorceress fell to her knees; her one hand to her forehead as if she were trying to see the premonition she was receiving more clearly.

"Sorceress!" cried Man At Arms as he scooped her up in his embrace. She trembled as she watched the image play through her mind. In the scrying pool, the blond girl trembled too.

**Chapter Three**

The night hung heavy with mists as Buffy ran through what looked like the Sunnydale Cemetery, but different; more sinister somehow if that can be imagined. She held in one hand a stake, sharpened to perfection, and in the other the tranquilizer gun they used to use on Oz during his wolf days. Somewhere in the distance she could hear screams of terror. Buffy ran towards them as swiftly as she could, her breath coming hard as she pushed herself faster and faster. As she looked up, she stopped dead in her tracks. Just on the horizon, standing tall into the night, was a sight Buffy remembered all too well. The ramshackle tower climbed higher and higher into the night sky

"Please, no; not again!" she thought as she silently watched the macabre scene unfold. It was frighteningly familiar, yet at the same time different; like the cemetery. An overwhelming sense of deja vu enveloped her as she again began sprinting towards the tower. Standing at the base of the tower was Dawn in a long, black and red gown. She was crying silently; she looked terrified yet regal at the same time. Next to her was a woman in a long red robe. She seemed to float above the ground, and the cloak hid her facial features so well that all that was visible of her were two golden slits where her eyes should be. Buffy watched as the cloaked woman conjured more of the strange dark mists between her hands. She pointed her finger at Dawn, and the mists encircled her waist and raised her to the ledge of the tower.

"DAWN!!" she screamed. Buffy had reached the entrance to the site and charged towards the tower. The cloaked woman looked her way and spoke in a whispery voice. "You can not save her. Your sacrifice was not enough!" She reared her right hand back and threw a ball of black mist directly at Buffy. As the magic slammed into her, Buffy felt her strength draining. She fell to her knees, gasping in pain. All she could do was watch as the past repeated itself. But the niggling feeling that something was different this time kept Buffy's eyes focused on her sister as she struggled against her bonds. Her friends fought valiantly to reach the tower, each trying in vain to save Dawn. But a man in blue and a red haired beast unlike any other Buffy had ever seen kept them at bay. Buffy watched as the man in blue, fighting with an ancient sword, swiped Xander across the back of his leg, severing his hamstring. Willow hefted a large heavy hammer, which she threw at the red furred beast. With a raise of his hand, the beast caught the hammer and hurled it directly back at Willow. Quickly, Willow uttered a spell, but, amazingly, her magic didn't work. Buffy struggled with the paralyzing exhaustion she felt as she watched the hammer catch her best friend in the face; smashing her nose and successfully knocking her unconscious.

Lara was there as well. She had made the most progress by shooting whatever got in her way with her pistols. She was scaling the tower as swiftly as she could. The cloaked woman saw this and began chanting again. As she raised her hands, Lara fell from the tower, landing at Buffy's side. She was breathing, but unable to move as well. The two women watched as the cloaked woman summoned her mists and flew herself and the man in blue up to the ledge of the tower. She gripped Dawn by the wrist and forced her palm open, grabbing whatever was clasped in it in her own hand. The woman's whispery voice floated down to where Buffy lay paralyzed by the effects of the spell. Buffy watched in horror as the woman brought her hands together, chanting in some language she had never heard before. A burst of golden light appeared when her hands clasped together, eventually coalescing into a shimmering golden oval. The man in blue pointed his ancient sword at Dawn's right arm. He slashed through the material at her elbow, deep enough to draw blood but not do any serious damage. Dawn bit her lip to keep from crying out in pain, but Buffy watched as her eyes widened in horror. As the blood dripped from Dawn's arm, a silvery portal opened beneath her. At the exact same moment, a blond woman in a long black and red gown, similar to the one Dawn wore, stepped through the golden oval, a sinister smirk on her beautiful face.

Buffy fought with all her strength of will, but she could not force her body to move. Instead she watched in terror as Dawn looked the blond woman directly in the eye and spat in her face. Suddenly, she knew what was going to happen, and every fiber of her being screamed that it was wrong. Cursing herself and her weakness, Buffy watched in horror as Dawn turned and ran the length of the ledge, leapt off it and plummeted into the silvery portal.

**"NOOOOO!!!!!!!"** Buffy screamed as she watched, tears streaming down her face.

"BUFFY!!!" Dawn screamed as she soared towards the silver light. The ground beneath Buffy began to shake and crack in he throes of an earthquake. Buffy watched as a huge crack opened beneath her and Lara, sending them plummeting to the Earth's molten core.

"Buffy! BUFFY!" Dawn shouted, shaking her sister over and over again. Buffy sat bolt upright at the kitchen table, sweating, crying, and still terrified from the images of her dream. She looked around the room, and slowly began to get her bearings. It was a dream; get a grip Summers, Buffy chided herself. Deep down, though, she knew not to disregard her dreams. Most of the time the Slayer's dreams were just that. But every now and then, her dreams were an omen of the dangers ahead. Giles often said she should write them down, but Buffy never did. She didn't need to; she always remembered her dreams in perfect detail.

Except, of course, this one, which was rapidly fading. The more Buffy tried to remember it, the less she could. All she could concretely recall was that something was different, and that Lara was present in it.

And, that Dawn was staring at her as if she was about to go into a coma or something.

"I'm okay, Dawnny, really." She attempted a weak smile, still visibly shaken. "Just a bad dream. Serves me right for consuming massive amounts of sugar before ten a.m."

Dawn smiled as she squeezed Buffy's shoulder. The way her sister had been tossing and crying, you'd have thought the world was ending.

Again.

"Is everything all right?" Lara asked, a note of concern creeping into her voice as she looked over at Buffy from her spot behind Willow.

"Just peachy!" Buffy announced. "What have you found out?"

"A big fat Zippo." Willow said from behind the computer at the counter. "No one has ever heard of the Crown of Morganna the Misbehaved."

"Uh, that's Morganna the Misbegotten." Lara corrected politely.

Willow blushed as red as her hair. "That would explain why no one has ever heard of her." Her fingers flew over the keys as she typed in the changes. As she typed away, Willow looked up at Lara, "Have you reached your friend yet?"

"Yes, I did. Bryce said if you connect to IP Address 192.168.100.255 he'll be able to web-conference with you and send you what he's found so far.

Willow smiled as she entered in the address and Bryce's face filled the screen. She smiled brightly "Hello there."

Bryce seemed a bit taken aback by the friendliness of the young redhead on the other end of his screen, "Hiya. Name's Bryce. I'm Lady Croft's gadgeteer of sorts."

"Pleased to meet you, I'm Willow. Now, we better get to work before Giles gets all grumpy on me." As she spoke, her voice and face took on a sarcastic grumpy male tone. Bryce laughed

"Well, I don't know what you could find I didn't but, let's share data and see what we got"

"Sure, though, trust me, there are some websites I go to that NO ONE, no matter how good they are, can get to without the right...gifts"

"Sounds like a challenge there, but, we don't have the time right now."

As Bryce and Willow chattered away and shared information, Lara looked idly around the room. Frankly, she was itching to get out of this kitchen. She never liked being sedentary for too long. She noticed that everyone seemed to be occupied with their positions; Buffy and that charming young gent named Xander were buried up to their necks in books while Willow eagerly downloaded information off the Internet and continued her conversation with Bryce. The only one with nothing to do was Dawn. Out of sheer boredom, Lara looked at her wristwatch and noticed it was after noon already.

"Say, is anyone else getting hungry for something a bit more substantial than the clouds of sugar and starch we consumed this morning?" Lara asked curiously. She noticed that as she spoke, Xander's face fell. "Not that they weren't simply heavenly, but my body tends to need a bit more substance."

"That's not how it looks from this side of the kitchen." Xander muttered under his breath. Buffy shot him a withering glare.

"I could go for something filling myself." Buffy replied, rubbing the remnants of sleep from her eyes. "I'll grab Giles' keys—"

"NO!!" Xander, Willow and Dawn chimed in, in unison. In the back of her mind, Lara recalled a quite humorous story Giles had told her last night about Buffy, her mother's car, and a lot of candy.  
Lara smiled, glad that she was truly getting to know this extraordinary woman, and chastising herself for her incredibly wrong first impression of Buffy as yet another blond bimbo. "Honestly, I need some fresh air. I thought if she wouldn't mind, your little one here could show me around."

Dawn's face lit up at the thought of showing Sunnydale to their interesting and strangely familiar new houseguest, and fell again at the term "little one'.

"I'm going to be sixteen next week, you know." She informed Lara, a little testier than she wanted to. Afraid of losing her chance to help, Dawn spoke up. "We could pick up something for lunch. I don't know about you, but I think that Lady Croft is used to better food than Doublemeat Burgers."

"Okay, you two go on the town. Dawn, you know where not to go. Some places around here aren't fun, even before it gets dark." Buffy teased her sister with a playful poke in the shoulder.

Grabbing her coat, Dawn kissed Buffy goodbye and pulled open the door. Lara grabbed her duster, quickly throwing her arms into the sleeves, and considering bringing her guns, but decided against it. For the first few minutes of their walk, Lara was curiously silent.

"Is everything okay, Lady Croft?" Dawn asked, unsure how to address royalty, (or whatever a Lady was in England these days.) Lara turned to her with a smile. "I've got two questions for you, Dawn."

"Shoot." Dawn replied, smiling.

"Why do you call me Lady Croft?" Dawn was confused. "When I'm in the States, my title doesn't apply. I'm here with friends, and to my friends I'm simply Lara." She paused. "I hope you'll call me Lara."

Dawn grinned, getting the picture. "Sure! And you can call me Dawnny, if you want. Everyone else does, even though I don't really like it all that much."

"So, how about I call you Sunshine." Lara said. Dawn felt her eyes mist over, "My mom used to call me that." She looked Lara in the eye. "I'd like that a lot. I miss it."

Lara smiled. "I know what you mean. I was younger than you when I lost my mother." For a moment, the two women walked in silence, each lost in their own memories. Dawn cleared her throat to get rid of the lump that was forming.

"What was your other question?" she asked.

Lara smiled wickedly. "What is a Doublemeat Burger?"

Dawn's face went pale at the thought of how many of those disgusting concoctions she had digested this year. With a look of alarm, she turned to Lara and placed a friendly hand on the pocket of her jacket.

"Trust me, you don't want to know." Dawn joked. She pulled her hand away slowly. "What's in there?" she asked. She had felt something hard in Lara's pocket.

"I'm not sure." Lara said as she reached a hand into the pocket to see for herself. Her hand closed over something cool and oval shaped. Lara felt a slight electrical shock as she pulled the object from her pocket. It was the pearl she had picked up in the Cave of the Ancient Hoard.

"Oh, this is something I picked up on my last expedition. It's nothing special."

Dawn gazed admiringly at the large oval shaped pearl in Lara's hand. "It's really pretty." She observed admiringly. Lara caught the look in the girls' eye and remembered how at sixteen she too had longed for something impractically feminine, even though her father and Giles had often commented on the fact that anything feminine like silks or jewels would quickly be ruined or covered in mud when left in her possession for too long. Lara was compelled to give it to her. She reached over and took Dawn's hand, turning it over and placing the gemstone in her open palm.

"Here, keep it."

Dawn's eyes went wide with astonishment. "Oh, no, I couldn't!" she started, but Lara wouldn't hear of it. A slow, satisfied smile spread across her face. "I insist." She paused. "Consider it an early birthday present."

"You really saw all of that happening?" Adora asked the Sorceress sometime later that evening. She had regained consciousness moments after falling to her knees. The vision she went on to describe to the twins and Man At Arms was horrible.

"Yes child. Now you see why it is imperative that your sword be restored to its full potential. Without the powers of Greyskull and the witch uniting, all mankind may fall to this great evil." The Sorceress whispered. The vision had left her weak, yet able to summon her telepathy if needed. The faintly glowing golden oval behind her wardrobe, the portal to earth that had been activated only a night before, glowed brighter than ever. Man At Arms glanced into the pool.

"The Key has the Stone." He announced somberly. "The portal has been opened." With a slight nod, the Sorceress spoke again. "You both know what you must do. You know how important it is that this evil not get a hold of the Key to the Dimensions. Guard her with your lives, both of you. Do not say a word to her or her protectors until after I have contacted her." With a nod of agreement, Adam lifted the wardrobe and he and Adora crossed through the portal. As the light faded in the room, the Sorceress reached out again with her mind in hopes of contacting the Key.

And the pearl that Lara had had set on a thick platinum chain at Sunnydale Jewelers that afternoon began to pulse with an inner energy. It almost positively glowed as it hung around Dawn Summers neck.

That's when Dawn began to hear the voice.

**Chapter Four**

Lara headed back from the bar, two glasses in her hands, bobbing and weaving around the crowds of teenagers filling the club. She narrowly avoided getting hit in the head by a pool cue as one of the men playing stopped to gawk at her as she passed. Used to this kind of attention, Lara smiled at him sweetly, her body swaying to the beat driven music from the stage. Lifting the drinks above her head, Lara continued to navigate through the gyrating bodies, which were dancing enthusiastically to the music from the techno band on stage. It was Lara's kind of dance music. Lots of beat, and meaningless words about 'moving to the beat of the Tribal Dance'. Lara laughed, and smiled, as she arrived back at the table she'd left Dawn at.

"Here you go Sunshine," Lara said, handing a coke to Dawn.

"Thanks," Dawn replied with a smile, her hand moving from the pendant around her neck. She'd been idly playing with it ever since Lara had the stone set in it. Dawn just couldn't believe that this woman had taken such a liking to her already. Usually, older people looked at Dawn as Buffy's Sister, but not Lara. She treated Dawn as just another person.

"So, what is this place called again?" Lara inquired, speaking up to be heard over the band up on stage.

"The Bronze. It's THE place to hang out in Sunnydale"

"And you're sure Buffy won't mind us being here? She did say not to stay out too late after dinner."

"Buffy and Giles and the rest will be busy all night researching that thing you found. But, if it'll make you feel better, I'll give her a call" As she spoke, Dawn reached into her pocket and pulled out a cell phone. Quickly she dialed home. After a few minutes, Buffy answered the phone.

"Hey Buffy. Lara thought I should tell you we're at The Bronze. You don't need us around right now, do you? No? Great. I promise, I'll be home by Ten. I know it's a school night. We'll be fine. I'm with Lara, I couldn't be much safer..."

As Dawn continued to speak with Buffy, the front door to the club suddenly burst open. Lara quickly leaped to her feet and stared through the now terrified crowd. As the people fled, Lara saw what had terrified them. Standing in the doorway, were four skeletons. Four MOVING skeletons. Four moving skeletons bearing curved swords and shields and wearing chain mail armor. And behind them, was a vaguely human shape that seemed to shimmer and glow with an unearthly light. The people continued to flee, the skeletons and the Luminescent being moving in and looking around offering Lara a glimpse of it's face. The creature standing behind the skeletons was a young woman. Long brown hair fell down her shoulders and an attractive figure was covered in a pair of tight pants and a halter tops. Yet the woman continued to glow with that unearthly glow. Brown eyes scanning the crowd, they fell on Dawn, who was hastily telling Buffy to get down there, shouting something about ghosts. In a Caribbean accented voice, the ghost pointed at Dawn, "Never mind, I found her."

As the ghost pointed, the skeletons began to quickly cross the dance floor. Lara hastily looked around, and grabbed a pool cue off the table, brandishing it like a quarterstaff, and wishing she had decided to bring her guns. "I don't know who you are, but the girl is not going anywhere with you"

The skeletons replied by advancing on Lara, and swinging their swords. Lara rolled to the floor, the first two blades sinking into the wood of the pool table. The third swung at her legs as she leaped back to her feet. Lara leaped, narrowly avoiding the swing, and slammed her pool cue into the skeleton's head. The bone crunched and shattered, even as the cue did the same. The skeleton suddenly fell to the floor, now nothing more than a pile of bones.

Lara nimbly grabbed the fallen skeleton's sword, and raised it above her head just in time to parry the blade of one of the other skeletons. Lara's eyes went wide, and she screamed in pain, as the other skeleton's blade bit into her back. Lara bit down on her pain and rolled out from between the two skeletons. She quickly leaped to her feet, spinning around to face her attackers, her blade whistling through the air as it swept through the rib cage of the second skeleton. Quickly, she spun around to face the third, only to see it fall to the ground as Dawn swept it's head from it's skeletal neck with a well placed chair. Lara smiled, moving towards Dawn, who shouted, "LOOK OUT!" Lara quickly spun around, her sword at the ready, only to see more skeletons move in through the door. Then, suddenly, out of no-where, the ghost was next to her. With a laugh, the glowing woman grabbed Lara's wrist, intense cold traveling up Lara's arm, until her blade fell from her hand and clanged on the floor. "Now, enough games. I will kill you, and then take the Girl."

"Now, now, that's not very nice, is it?" came a female voice from in front of the stage. "I'd let her go, Lady, or else my brother and I are going to have to make you let her go."

From the shadows near the shattered door, a muscular blonde haired man appeared, "I'd listen to her if I were you. My sister never makes open threats."

In response, the ghost released Lara and spun around with a growl, ghostly hands swinging for the man, who easily rolled out of the way. Lara grabbed her dropped sword, even as the man pulled an intricate looking greatsword from his back. For a second, Lara wondered who these two curiously dressed people were, but was then swept up in the melee.

"I don't think she understands Sis" the man said.

"Well, then, Brother, let's show her why it's not nice to attack innocent women." Leaping from the stage, a sword almost identical to her brother's in her hands, a blonde haired woman landed on her feet next to Lara, "Could you use a hand?" she asked, with a smile

Lara nodded, wondering if every blonde in California was some kind of wisecracking superhero. However, she pushed those thoughts to the back of her mind as she swung her borrowed sword at the nearest skeleton. As she fought, Lara continued to move back to where she'd last seen Dawn, fully intending to protect her new friend. However, Dawn had things well in hand. Having grabbed the sword from the skeleton she had killed, she was doing a fairly good job at collecting bone piles around her.

Adora watched the dark haired girl move back towards the young girl defensively, and swung her sword at the skeletons before her, cutting her way to her brother. Adam was busily dodging the ghosts glowing hands. The ghost gestured at Adam, and suddenly, several bar stools took to the air and flew at him. Adam easily dodged them, rolling along the floor, "I'm sure glad Teela insists on those daily sparring bouts." He lunged at the ghost, his sword leading the way, just as Adora arrived behind it.

"Need some help Brother?"

"Always could use a hand from you Sis"

Adora smiled. It felt good to do something beside brood over the loss of the gem from her sword. She nodded at Adam, who swung at the ghost's head. The thing laughed, dodging Adam's blow, only to fall into Adora's descending blade. The ancient blade bit deep into the ghosts glowing body, and with a pop, the ghost vanished. However, the woman's voice echoed, "You have succeeded for now, but the Girl will be mine"

Dawn glanced over at Lara briefly, catching a glimpse of their two sword wielding saviors, and then re-focused her attention on the next skeleton advancing on her. These things seemed to never stop coming. However, her recent training with her sister was paying off, and she was doing a fairly good job of holding her own.

Lara grimaced in pain, the gash on her back freely bleeding and throbbing with pain as she fought her way to Dawn, just as the ghost was popped by the two blondes. As the ghost vanished, a cloud of oily black smoke began to issue from the floor between Adam and Adora. The two blondes began coughing, struggling to escape the smoke. Simultaneously, the remaining skeletons crumbled into piles of bones, their swords and shields clanging on the floor.

Quickly, Lara looked at Dawn, "You alright?"

"Yea, I'm OK. Though, I think you're going to have to replace that shirt after tonight." Dawn smiled, and Lara smiled back. She then looked over at the two new arrivals, who had gotten out of the smoke, and had ceased coughing "I don't know who you are, but thanks for your help."

Dawn smiled, as Lara headed towards the two, "Yea, if you two hadn't shown when you did, those things might have made a real mess of us. I'm Dawn. Dawn Summers. And this is my friend Lara."

Adora remained bent over, hands on her knees, still coughing some. Adam, however, smiled, extending his hand, "Glad we could help Dawn, Lara. I'm Adam."

Adora finally ceased her coughing, and smiled as she stood up, "And I'm his sister, Adora." Adora looked at the two women, then stopped suddenly, staring at the pendant hanging around Dawn's neck The young girl was wearing the missing gem from her sword. However, before Adora could ask her about the gem, or where she got it from, four more people ran into the room. "OK, no one move!" Buffy shouted, brandishing a battle axe in her hands. Xander and Giles flanked her, each holding a crossbow. Behind them stood Willow, All four of them looked ready to kill.

"It's ok Buffy, it's all over. Lara took care of the ghost and the skeletons. Well, she did with the help of these two. Adam, Adora, this is my sister, Buffy, And Xander, Willow, and Giles. Everyone, this is Adam and Adora. They helped us out."

Buffy looked at Lara even as the rest of the gang scanned the room. "Uhhh, Dawnny, who are you talking about?" Buffy said

Dawn stared at the spot where the two blondes were only minutes before. "They were just here. Lara, you saw them, didn't you?"

Lara put an arm around Dawn's shoulders. "Don't worry Sunshine, you're not imagining things. Our rescuers have seemed to vanish into the same smoke the ghost did."

Buffy sighed, lowering her axe, her friends following suit. "Dawn, why can't you EVER go out and not have some catastrophe happen?"

**Chapter Five**

Giles stared at Dawn, dumbfounded, "You are positive the ghost was Kendra?"

Dawn brushed a stray lock of hair from her eyes as she waded through the various bone piles that had once been skeletons. "I'm positive Giles. It was Kendra, down to the accent."

Lara looked over at Giles questioningly, "Who is Kendra?"

"Long story actually. Let's just say she's a dead Vampire Slayer," Buffy remarked.

"We still owe Drusilla for that one" Xander retorted.

"Not now Xander. We have much more important things to worry about. Since Lara saw this Morganna once, we can assume that she is looking for the crown. Now Kendra's ghost appears, with a horde of skeletal warriors, and wants Dawn. There has got to be some connection, and we need to find it out. "Giles chided.

Lara looked at Giles and Buffy, "Let's not forget our mysterious saviors either. They didn't just up and vanish."

"Well, they sure did a good imitation of just that" Xander quipped.

"Dawn, Lara, is there anything else you can remember about them?"

Lara shook her head, "Not really. They struck me as your typical California Blonde Airhe....sorry Buffy"

Buffy shot Lara a withering glare as Dawn opened her mouth to speak, "They seemed pretty close. Kinda reminded me of us, Buffy. They were well trained too. Oh, and they dressed real funny. Adam wore this purple furry pair of shorts over these tights, and Adora was wearing a leotard under her vest."

"If Cordy was here, she'd say something like 'Well, I guess you don't need style to kick ass." Willow said with a giggle.

"Which is exactly why we're all jumping for joy at her absence." Xander said dryly.

"Xander, heel." Buffy joked, giving him a light slap on the shoulder.

"Ow!... Slayer strength!" Xander reminded her, rubbing the spot where she had slapped him.

Giles shook his head, "Before we all reverted to our kindergarten years, I believe we were discussing our new compatriots. I guess there's not a whole lot to go on. We'll all just have to keep our eyes open for them. Now, I think it would be a good idea if we all got some sleep while we can."

"Yea. These apocalypse types can be so inconsiderate, interrupting everyone's beauty sleep." Buffy quipped.

Willow and Xander smiled at Buffy's comment even as Giles grimaced.

"Guess it's time for me to patrol then" Buffy added

Lara looked over at Buffy, "Could you use some company? I'm still pumped up from the fight"

"Is she serious, or is she channeling Faith?" Xander asked. "Cause you know, one rogue slayer and one dead slayer and one recently resurrected slayer-"

"Are four slayers more than I like dealing with at a time," Buffy finished as she slung her bag over her shoulder. Suddenly, Dawn's head snapped up.

"Oh my God."

Buffy shot her a quizzical glance. "What is it, Dawnny?"

Dawn looked her sister dead in the eye. "You don't think something could have happened to Faith, do you? I mean, Adora's as tough as you, Buffy, maybe even stronger. Could she be the next Slayer?"

"It's worth a check up call. I'll phone Wesley tomorrow and inquire to her whereabouts." Giles said as he sleepily rubbed his eyes. "Now though, I do believe someone in this room has to get up for school tomorrow."

Dawn groaned. "Don't remind me."

"So, Sunshine goes to bed, Doughnut Man and the Redheaded Computer Whiz watch over the house, Grumpy Old Man reads himself to sleep, and Slayer Barbie and I go check out for ghouls." Lara recited, pointing to each of them in turn. "Sound like a plan?" She asked,.

Xander stared at Lara, amazement on his face at the woman's carefully crafted way of insulting and befriending everyone at the same time. It was a thing of beauty. It was something he'd do.

Buffy merely shrugged, "Sure, why not. Just remember, no shooting innocent bystanders"

Lara smiled as she grabbed her guns from the closet, slipping the gun belt around her hips and securing the straps of the holsters to her legs. Xander admired the view as Willow avoided looking at the guns. Dawn looked a bit down at Lara's heading out. Willow caught on, "Don't worry Dawnny, Xander and I'll keep you company. Make some popcorn and settle in for the 90210 Marathon."

Dawn grinned, "I forgot that was tonight. Cool" Xander, meanwhile, moaned in despair, while Giles made a quick exit. "Well, Good night everyone. I had better examine some of the books back at my condo to see if there is any more information on this Morganna."

Xander made a move toward the door, "I think I'll....OWWWW!" and he yelped as Willow's elbow impacted with his sternum. "On...second thought, watching Shannon Dougherty and Tiffani Amber Theissen all night with you two girls sounds like a blast."

Buffy headed for the door, Lara behind her, "Don't let her stay up too late you two"

Adora looked at Adam, "Why did you pull me out of there? The girl has the gem!"

"Calm down Sis. It wasn't the right time. The Sorceress hasn't contacted any of them yet."

Adora sighed, "You're right Brother. Still, to be so close..."

"I know Sis, but at least now we know the gem is nearby. Now we just need to make sure nothing happens to them, or to it."

Adora tapped her brother on the shoulder, "Then, perhaps one of us should keep watch on the house while the other follows those two?" she pointed at the door of the Summer's home as Buffy and Lara exited.

"Sure. I'll follow the two girls and you watch the house."

Adora smiled at Adam, "Why don't you watch the house and I follow them? I saw the way you looked at the blonde. Don't want you tempted to say hi before the Sorceress makes contact now, do we?"

Adam grinned, "Awww, you take all the fun out of things Sis. All right, you win. Just don't let them see you."

"Don't worry Adam. I think I can handle following them. After all, it's not like The Horde is here."

"Just be careful sis."

Adora looked over her shoulder at her twin, "You too Brother" and then she headed off into the night, stealthily following Lara and Buffy.

**Chapter Six**

Dawn hummed to herself as she readied the popcorn. For some reason she couldn't get this tune out of her head, and she hoped that by humming it, she might. Dawn opened the door to the refrigerator and grabbed the butter.

"Dawn Summers..."

With a jump, Dawn dropped the butter at the sound of the willowy sounding female voice. "Who's there?"

"Dawn Summers..."

Dawn looked around, seeing she was alone and shrugged. "I must be hearing things. Not enough sleep, or caffeine or something. Caffeine, that's it. Haven't had enough Coca Cola lately."

Dawn hastily picked up the butter and grabbed a can of Coke from the fridge, placing them on the table, and humming to herself again. She grabbed the soda and popped it open, taking a swallow.

"Dawn Summers. Hear me..."

Dawn spit Coke all over the kitchen floor as she jumped at the voice again.

"Wh...who's there?" she said, her voice just a tad shaky, her eyes looking around the room frantically. She was ready to shout for Willow and Xander as a kaleidoscopic light suddenly formed on the wall opposite her.

"Do not be afraid child. I am a friend. My name is The Sorceress, and I am contacting you because I need your help."

"The Sorceress. Right. Okay. So, where are you?"

"Far, far away," the willowy, whispering voice said. "A very great distance. One which makes it so I can only project my voice to you. You are in grave danger child."

Dawn grimaced, "I'm always in danger."

"The Gem of Earthly Magic must be restored to the Sword of Power, and soon. Only with the aid of it's bearer can you hope to withstand the evil that is..."

Suddenly, the voice faded away. "Sorceress? Hello? Anyone there?" Dawn looked around, waiting for the voice to return, but it didn't. Having grown accustomed to strange and magical things happening all the time, Dawn went into the other room. Xander was pretending to be sleeping, even as he gawked at Tiffani Theissen on the screen. Willow was talking on her cell phone. Dawn waited patiently for her to hang up

"Sorry Mrs. Mallory, "Willow said into the phone, "I haven't seen Quinn in a day or so. Sure, I'll let him know you're looking for him if I see him. I have to go now. Bye" Willow folded up her cell and slipped it back into a pocket, looking questioningly at Dawn."

"Uh, Willow, can I talk to you for a sec?"

The redhead smiled at Dawn, "Sure Dawnny. What's wrong?"

"Well, I just had a conversation with someone not there. She called herself The Sorceress and said I'm in danger."

"Slow down Dawn. Why don't you start from the beginning?"

Dawn sat down, took a deep breath, and began to tell Willow and Xander about her conversation with the voice.

Buffy and Lara walked the streets, idly keeping an eye on things as they looked around. "So, this is how you spend your evenings? No wonder you're such a bubbly personality"

"Thanks a lot Lara. You know, you ASKED to join me on this."

Lara smiled at her new friend, "Only teasing you. So, what are we looking for anyhow?"

"Oh, the usual. Vampires, zombies, demons. Things that go grunt in the night."

Lara shot her a sideways glance. "Not all nightly grunting is bad, you know."

Buffy smiled grimly. "In my experience, it's the grunters that are the problem. The things that go hum-bump usually are harmless."

Lara shook her head, "And I thought I led an interesting life"

The two turned the corner, passing the Sunnydale Movie Theater and heading down Main Street. "So, you never did tell me what a Tomb Raider is"

"Mostly, I recover lost artifacts. My father was an archaeologist and I guess you could say I followed in his footsteps. Lets me travel the world, see exotic places, help Queen and Country"

"You don't sound too enthusiastic"

"Well, lately, the things I've recovered have caused more trouble than they're worth. First the Triangle, than Pandora's Box, now the Crown. Makes me wonder if maybe I should leave well enough alone."

"Oh, I don't know about that. Look at it from the other side. If you don't recover them, someone else will. And, that someone could be the type to use it to open a new Hell Dimension or something equally bad. Then I get called in and whoops, there goes my vacation!"

Lara smiled again, "Thanks Buffy. Really. Now, though, I think we should stop them" and she pulled her guns from their holsters, gesturing at the two men cornering a young brunette against a wall.

Buffy, leaped into action, the first vampire turning and moving to block her kick. Lara's guns fired with precision accuracy, hitting the second vampire, forcing him to release the girl, who immediately fled into the darkness.

"Gee, she didn't even wait to say thank you!" Buffy exclaimed, her foot impacting with the first vamp's skull and sending him reeling. "Come to think of it, YOU didn't say thank you either, Lara!"

Lara turned and pointed one of her pistols directly at Buffy. She fired, sending the approaching vamp flying through the air. Had she not shot when she did, the creature would have taken Buffy by surprise. "That thanks enough?"

"Call it even!" Buffy shouted as she staked the twitching vamp, reducing him to a pile of ash. She looked up at the ensuing battle, her eyes wide as she studied the Tomb Raider in action.

Lara fired continuously at the other vampire, the bullets forcing him back again and again. Suddenly, both guns clicked, empty. The vampire grinned and charged at Lara. Lara smiled a lopsided grin as she ejected the spent clips, and holstered the guns, which were automatically reloaded. Her arms raised back up as the vampire leaped into the air, hands extended for Lara's throat. She dropped into a roll, guns barking with fire again, riddling the vampire's body and sending him spinning into the wall.

Buffy pulled the stake from her vampire and spun to face Lara as the monster exploded in a cloud of dust. "You have self reloading holsters?" she exclaimed with surprise.

Lara shrugged, "A girl can never have too many toys"

Meanwhile, the vampire was slowly regaining his feet, his body riddled with bullet holes. "Do you know how much those things HURT?" he exclaimed.

"Do we really care?" Buffy quipped, and reached for her stake. To her surprise, she was fresh out. The vamp advanced quickly. Buffy reached up into her hair and pulled out the two wooden chopsticks that were holding it up off her neck. She idly tossed them over her shoulder, her blond locks cascading down her back as she walked away. The chopsticks flew straight as an arrow into the vampire's heart. "This sucks" he remarked just before exploding in a cloud of dust.

The two women looked at each other and laughed for a few minutes. "We'd better move on. The Sunnydale Police aren't the greatest in the world, but even they will respond to all that gunfire."

Lara followed Buffy as the two raced down the alley and turned the corner. Neither of them noticed the statuesque blonde following them.

"Well, they certainly make enough noise." Adora remarked. "Certainly makes it easier to follow them."

Suddenly, Adora went stiff, her blue eyes bulging out as she felt a presence enter her body. She opened her mouth to scream, but nothing came out. With a gasp, she fell to the ground.

Minutes passed, then suddenly, Adora rose from the ground, brushing dirt from her body. "Finally," she remarked, her voice slightly different, carrying a hint of a Caribbean accent. "I have returned to Sunnydale."

"Well, isn't that just special?" a sniveling, weasly voice said. "I always wanted a blonde from the Islands"

Adora whirled around, face to face with a short, skinny vampire. "You don't know who you are dealing with, vampire."

"Oh, I don't? And who AM I dealing with?"

"I am Kendra, the Vampire Slayer." She paused, and then a low, raspy whisper emerged from her lips. "And I serve the Queen"

"The...THE QUEEN? Sorry. Didn't mean anything. Honest." The vampire backed off, hands raised protectively.

Kendra, in Adora's body, leaped through the air, grabbing a nearby wooden crate and hurling it at the retreating vampire. The crate hit the vampire in the back, slamming him to the ground.

"I like this body. It's strong and athletic...and surges with untapped power". As she spoke, Kendra advanced on the vampire. It struggled to regain it's feet even as Kendra grabbed a broken piece of wood and slammed it into the vampire's back and through it's heart. The creature exploded in a cloud of dust. "That felt GOOD." Kendra remarked. "Now, to complete your task." The whispery voice in Kendra's head commanded, and Kendra felt herself moving. Against her will, Kendra headed for Main Street, and towards the Summer's home.

**Chapter Seven**

"Okay, so let me get this straight." Xander began. "You were standing in the kitchen making popcorn when this rainbow lady with the voice starts telling you you're in grave danger." Dawn nodded. "Well, except for the disembodied voice factor and psychedelic light show, this doesn't sound like anything too out of the ordinary. I mean, considering we live directly off the exit for the Highway to the Danger Zone."

Dawn snapped her fingers. "That's it! That's the song I couldn't get out of my head!" she looked up at Willow, and stopped. "Sorry, I'm off track. Teenage thing. It keeps happening you know. I start talking about one thing and then I get sidetracked and start babbling about everything and anything that pops into my head and..."she trailed off. "I'm doing it again, aren't I?"

"Yeah, a little." Xander replied. "Did she mention anything else?"

Dawn nodded. "Yeah! She said something about a stone of power needing to be restored to a sword." She looked around frantically. "As far as I know we don't have any swords. I mean, there's a rocket launcher, some stakes, knives, a big axe, several crossbows, and other assorted pointy objects, but—"  
Willow put a comforting hand on Dawn's shoulder. "Easy Dawnny. Breathe. It's okay, I don't think there are any swords here either, so I guess we'll have to wait for it to find its way to Sunnydale. Sooner or later, everything does, you know." Dawn laughed dryly, still slightly unnerved from her experience.

Adam watched the conversation from outside the window. "Well, it sure sounds like the girl has been speaking with The Sorceress. I guess she has the key then. Now, if Adora would only..." he stopped his conversation with himself as he saw his sister sneaking up on the front of the house. Adam slipped from his hiding spot and went to his sister, "Hey sis, what are you..."

Kendra's hand thrust out and hit Adam with all her unnatural strength. The Prince of Eternia flew through the air and slammed into a large oak tree outside the Summer's home. His head hit the tree, leaving a dent in its trunk, and he slumped to the ground, unconscious.

Kendra stepped up to the front door and her foot slammed into it, shattering it to splinters. She entered and smiled as she noticed the stunned Willow and Xander, "Xander Harris, Willow Rosenberg" she said as her eyes lit with recognition. "Well, I see we meet again. It has been quite some time."

Forget the peons and get the crown. A raspy voice in Kendra's head whispered. She shook her head, trying to clear her mind from anything but her own thoughts. Someone else was there though, controlling her body and forcing her into actions she didn't want to take. These people were her friends, sort of. As the Slayer, she had been trained to protect the innocent, not harm them.

You WILL get the crown! The voice commanded. Kendra felt the limbs of her borrowed body beginning to move, not of her own accord. Her mind went numb, and suddenly, Adora's blue eyes glazed over with a fierce determination. She slowly advanced on Xander.

"OK, I don't know who you are you Wrestlemania reject, but, around here, people don't go just kicking in doors. Especially when I have to fix those same doors!" Xander quipped.

Dawn merely stared, "Adora.." she murmured. Willow turned her head to look at Dawn in surprise.

As Willow turned her head, Kendra grabbed a nearby lamp and hurled it at her. The lamp hit the redhead and she fell to the ground

"OK, now you've ticked me off!" Xander shouted as he leaped over the couch and swung a fist at Kendra.

"You're cute when you're mad" Kendra quipped as she grabbed his fist and squeezed. Xander fell to his knees in pain and soon was on the ground as Kendra's knee impacted with his nose.

Meanwhile, Dawn chose the better part of valor, running into the kitchen and quickly dialing her sister. "C'mon, pick up Buffy"

"Busy slaying!" Buffy's voice came from the phone, followed by the sound of rapid gunfire.

"Buffy, quick! Get home! There's someone..."

The phone was suddenly torn from Dawn's hand, and from the wall as well, as Kendra grabbed it from her. "So, who are you anyhow? I don't seem to have a memory of you." Kendra asked, curiosity overcoming her need to complete her mission.

Dawn saw her opportunity to stall for time, "I'm Dawn. Dawn Summers. And, my sister Buffy will be here soon, along with Lady Croft. I don't think I'd want to be here when they show up if I were you, the wooden stakes and flying bullets could be hazardous to your health.."

"Impossible. The Slayer has no sister."

"How would you know? Who are you?"

"I am Kendra, the Vampire Slayer."

Dawn's eyes went wide, "Kendra? The one Drusilla..."

Dawn's statement was cut off as Kendra's hand flashed out in anger, flinging the teenager across the room, her head slamming into the refrigerator door.

As Dawn slumped to the floor, Kendra's eyes suddenly fell on the crown, still sitting on the kitchen table where Lara had placed it earlier that day.

Outside, Adam slowly came to his feet, "Something is seriously wrong with Adora. I think this is more a job for He-Man." Reaching behind his back, he pulled his sword from it's scabbard and thrust it into the night sky. Holding it aloft he shouted "By the Power of Greyskull" Thunder clapped, lightning flashed and struck the sword. As the electricity traveled down the sword and into the arm of the man holding it, an image of Castle Greyskull formed behind him. Overcome with the energy flowing through him, Adam transformed into He-Man. Pulling the sword into his line of visage as the lightning coruscated even brighter, he shouted into the night "I have the POWER!!" With a charge, He-Man tore into the house.

And the confused and recently ensouled Spike stared in disbelief from behind what he had come to think of as his tree. "Bugger me, this place just keeps getting worse and worse." He looked at the front of his tree, and saw the dent. Falling to his knees, he sobbed for a moment, triggering a rush of memories of things he had done and regretted. With a scream of anguish, Spike fled into the darkness.

Kendra stepped over the now unconscious Dawn and reached for the crown just as He-Man burst through the kitchen door, "OK Miss," his voice echoed as he spoke, "I don't think you want to be grabbing things that don't belong to you."

Kendra turned, and for a moment, she thought she recognized the barely dressed and VERY muscular man before her. However, her instincts quickly took over and she spun with a kick at the man. He-Man easily blocked the kick, "Now, that's not very nice."

Forget about the muscle man and get the crown. We will deal with him later. The voice in Kendra's head commanded. She grabbed the chair closest to herself and threw it at He-Man. As he easily dodged the flying object, He-Man scooped up the unconscious Dawn and took her out of the kitchen, away from the line of fire.

While He-Man was distracted, Kendra grabbed the crown. She dropped it immediately, as if she had been scorched, and magic flowed from the crown into Adora's body. Suddenly, her mind cleared and she surveyed the wrecked kitchen.

"I don't have to do this!" She shouted into the night. Moving briskly, Kendra headed towards the back door.

YES YOU DO!!! GET THE CROWN!!!!

Kendra jerked spasmodically as the glaze snapped back over her eyes. Mechanically, she picked up the Coke soaked dishtowel Dawn had left on the counter and used it to retrieve the crown. Fleeing through the back door, she turned and looked behind her as He-Man re-entered the kitchen.

"I'm sorry." She whispered, tears welling in her eyes as the body that carried the souls of a dead slayer and the Princess of Eternia ran into the night, against the will of both heroines inside it.

He-Man stepped out the door to chase his sister into the night, but stopped as a whispery voice was heard. "Let her go for now He-Man. You must make sure the others are not injured and protect The Key. Adora and the enslaved Spirit will be all right."

Obeying the Sorceress, He-Man reentered the living room and leaned over Willow's unconscious body. He placed a hand under her neck and pressed two fingers against her throat, checking for a pulse. Outside, the howl of a lone wolf was heard,

"No, Stop!! He's not the one who hurt her!" a higher pitched male voice cried from the other side of the broken door. Turning to face the newest intruder, He-Man found himself knocked to the floor for the second time that night by what appeared to be a very large, and very hungry wolf. They grappled and rolled on the floor, He-Man's strength matched by the wolf's ferocity. Through sheer luck, He-Man was able to get a grip on the wolf's jaws, barely keeping them from his vulnerable throat. "Next time...I'm going to make sure... I bring...Battle Cat with me!"

Willow groaned, her hands going to the lump on the side of her head. "Owww." She moaned, then saw the rolling melee on the floor.

"Ardente!" She shouted, pointing a finger at the two forms. A stream of pink smoke swirled around them and both beings fell into a deep and dreamless sleep. Only then did Willow notice that the being He-Man was fighting was a wolf; one that was rapidly changing back into a familiar form. Scarcely believing her eyes, Willow walked slowly to the now naked young man lying atop the barely covered muscle man. Her fingers reached out and gently rolled him off into her lap.

"Oz..." she whispered, emotion surging through her veins like magic. Scooping him into her arms, Willow half carried, half dragged the sleeping Oz out of the living room and into the hall, covering him with a blanket and cradling his head in her lap.

Noting the witch's distraction, the smaller and quieter young man dressed in black, who had been hiding in the broken door slipped into the house and headed straight for Dawn's motionless form.

"Please be okay." He whispered. "The last thing I need is for the Slayer to think I killed her sister." With a gentle shake, he coaxed Dawn into an awakened state.

"Are you okay?" he asked, looking frantically over his shoulder. Dawn nodded, hoping her head would clear before the night was over. Her eyes focused and flared with recognition.

"Jonathan?!" She whispered as he backed away. He turned quickly, placed a finger over his lips and whispered "Shh." With that, Jonathan Levinson, wanted criminal, fled the Summers home and into the night.

**Chapter Eight**

Buffy's stake impacted with the vampire's heart, dusting it instantly even as she swore and hung up the phone. "Trouble at home. Think you can handle the rest of these Lara?"

Lara Croft's guns barked again and again, shattering the kneecaps of the three advancing vampires. She quickly holstered her guns and pulled a stake from her belt. "Go Buffy. I'll catch up!" Braided ponytail whirling behind her, Lara spun kicked another vampire and used his falling body for leverage as she leapt over him, legs spread in a split, and landed behind him. Her hand flashed and the vampire turned to dust as the stake took his unlife.

Buffy nodded, "Be quick!" and with that, the Slayer darted off into the night, heading for home. The four remaining vampires leered at Lara as Buffy seemed to flee into the night. "Hey! We scared off the Slayer!" one of them gloated.

His gloat became a grunt of pain as Lara quickly dusted him and turned to face his three limping compadres.

Buffy's heart raced as she turned the corner and saw her front door splintered in. She ran in, stake still in her right hand, "Dawn! Willow! Xander!" Buffy's eyes darted around the room, falling first upon the shattered kitchen door and then upon the man in the Fur Bathing suit lying on her floor. Her instincts took over and she leapt to the man's side, grabbing his hair, "Where is my sister?" she shouted in his ear

"Buffy! No! He's a good guy, I think." Xander said as he limped into the living room, holding a sandwich bag full of ice to the back of his head. "At least, he's not the one who slammed us all around."

Buffy spun to her feet. "Xander! Where's Dawnny?"

Xander gestured up the stairs, "Resting in her bed with a bump as big as mine. This getting beaten up by women stuff really sucks"

Buffy didn't wait around for Xander to finish his dialogue. She took the stairs, two and three at a time, and ran into her sister's room.

Dawn looked up at her sister, and smiled, "Buffy..." she said, her voice raspy, "I knew you'd come..."

Buffy smiled, "Just rest Dawnny. Xander's calling the paramedics and we'll get you looked over."

Dawn smiled, "I'm alright Buffy, really" she smiled again, her voice returning to its normal timber. "It was that girl, Adora...but, she seemed different. She claimed to be Kendra. And...Willow..."

"What about Willow, Dawnny? And who is the Hercules wannabe lying on our floor?"

"I don't know who he is, he kind of came in towards the end. But, Willow, she um, she uh—"

"She's fine." A soft, and extremely familiar male voice said from the door. 'At least, she is now."

Buffy turned slowly to face the speaker. Leaning against the door frame was a man about her height, with a shock of reddish brown hair and big brown eyes. One of Xander's Hawaiian print shirts draped loosely across his shoulders, and a pair of baggy sweat pants covered his legs. Buffy's eyes widened in shock as she took in the fact that he was indeed standing in her house.

"Oz?" She asked tentatively. After the events that apparently occurred this evening, Buffy was not sure if she could trust her own eyesight.

"Hey Buffy. Long time..." Oz began. His voice trailed off as the Slayer engulfed him in a bear hug.

"Your words may be small, but your timing, as usual, is impeccable." She said, releasing him from her embrace.

Suddenly, footsteps thundered up the stairs and the shining barrel of a pistol was placed to Oz's head. "Alright, "Lara said, "Step back from Buffy, very slowly."

"Only very? Not very, very?" Oz stated.

"Lara. It's ok, he's a friend," Buffy said, slipping past Oz and into the hallway.

Lara lowered her pistol, "Sorry," she said with a sheepish grin, "After I saw the condition downstairs and that Xander had somehow managed to get that muscle man tied into a chair; which, you must see by the way, it's quite humorous. I naturally assumed the worst."

"Well, you know what happens when you assume, Lara." Dawn said from the bed,

"Sunshine! You're all right" Lara exclaimed, slipping past Buffy and wrapping Dawn in a hug

"Ow...Wounded person here."

"Sorry," Lara apologized again, sheepishly grinning.

Buffy, meanwhile, shot Lara's back a look, twinged with a touch of jealousy at how close her sister and Lara had become in merely one day.

"Uh, Buff? Willow's in her room" Oz interjected, noticing Buffy's discomfort.

"Yea, I better go check on Will. Oz, why don't you go downstairs and help Xander with our, uh, guest? And while you're at it, someone should probably give Giles a call."

"I'm on it. I'll have Xander call everyone's favorite Librarian and I'll keep an eye on Jercules in the chair. Oh, when you're done with Willow, there's something I need to talk to you about."

"Talk? You? Must be important. You spoke more than one sentence!"

Oz smiled, "Yea, well, you know me."

"Yes, I do."

Buffy headed out and looked back as she saw Lara sitting on the bed with Dawn. She quickly turned away and went in to check on Willow. She found the redhead out of bed, seated staring out the window.

"Will? You okay?" Buffy asked as she entered the room.

"Is he still here?" Willow asked, a slight tremor in her voice. Her back remained to her best friend.

"Oz? Yeah, he's downstairs playing commando with Xander."

"He isn't leaving...he isn't leaving...." Willow whispered over and over to herself. Buffy took in her best friends body language very carefully. The tense shoulders, the stiff neck; she'd seen all these signs before. Unfortunately, the last time she saw them was moments before Willow unleashed her fury on the helpless Magic Box.

"Will?" Buffy asked again, this time moving closer to her friend and placing a hand on her shoulder.

"STOP!" Willow commanded with a wave of her hand. Buffy froze on the spot, unable to move her arms or legs. She stared at her friend in fright, terrified of what would happen next. Willow turned to face her, her normally sunny and carefree blue eyes as black as night. With a shake of her head, Willow's eyes cleared. Shock registered on her face.

"Oh my God, Buffy! I'm so sorry! I didn't mean to..." she noticed that Buffy was trying to say something, and then remembered the spell stopped all movement, including speech.

"Oh! Release!" She said, retracting her hand in the opposite direction she had flung it before. With a gasp, the Slayer collapsed on her bed. Remorse filled Willow's face. "Are you okay?"

Buffy smiled. "Just peachy. Really." She paused and searched Willow's face for clues to what had triggered this surge of magic. "Are you?"

"Why's he here, Buffy? Why of all times to show up again did he pick now?"

"Maybe he knew that now is when you needed him the most." Buffy offered. "I mean, this is Oz we're talking about. He's as in tune to you as Angel was to me-I mean is- I mean...I don't know what I mean." She laughed dryly. "YOU know what I mean though, right?

"Yeah, I do." Willow said. "I guess we should get downstairs. I mean, I just left that big guy asleep on the floor."

Buffy laughed, remembering what Lara had described to her in Dawn's room. "Don't worry, Sergeant Slaughter down there is in good hands. Commando Xander is back. You know how much he loves pretending he's the big strong interrogative type."

"Yeah! Anya told me once he dressed her in a white dress and sat her on a chair and made her pretend she was Sharon Stone in Basic Instinct...And you really didn't want to know that." She shuddered. "Come to think of it, I really didn't want to know that either."

Buffy grimaced at Willow's comments, "Yes, Will, sharing WAY too much here. Let's go make sure he doesn't hurt himself. That guy is built like Schwarzenegger."

Willow rose from the bed and followed Buffy downstairs.

Lara looked at Dawn, "Something is wrong. Something besides the ruckus downstairs."

Dawn looked at her new friend. "Yea...something did happen, but.."

Lara noticed Dawn's hesitation, "What is it Sunshine? You can tell me."

"Well, you see...Jonathan showed up along with Oz."

"Jonathan? I guess this is another nasty person?"

"Well, not really. Well, sorta. He and Buffy were friends, but, he kinda helped Warren steal things and Warren is the one who killed Tara."

"Tara, She was Willow's lover, right? The one who was murdered and caused Willow to go all evil?"

"Yes. But, Jonathan never really hurt anyone. He, well, he just wanted to have some friends."

"The shy, quiet type, right? Liked Sci fi and Dungeons and Dragons?"

"Yea. Exactly the type, except he really CAN cast spells."

"More magic? Why do I feel so in over my head here?"

Dawn smiled, "I don't know, you seem to be doing pretty well. Besides, you DID find Pandora's Box, not to mention stop the Illuminati."

Lara smiled, "Hey, that's supposed to be a secret, remember? Anyhow, Jonathan showed up when, what his name, Oz, did?"

"Yea. But, it was like he came here WITH Oz. And, he didn't hurt anyone. He just wanted to make sure I was OK, then he ran off. I think he wants to help but he's afraid of what Buffy and the rest will do to him if they know he is here. I want to tell Buffy, but, I don't know if I should."

"Well, if it's my advice you want, I think you should tell Buffy at least and see what she thinks. Then, we can take it from there. I'll go with you if you want me to."

"Really? You will?"

"Sure Sunshine. What are friends for?"

"OK, let's get this done with then." Dawn began to rise from her bed.

Lara put out a restraining hand, "Not so fast. Wait till after the paramedics have looked you over at least. That's a pretty nasty bump you have. Besides, I have some phone calls to make and some things to look into myself.

"OK Lara. If you think I should wait. Are you leaving then?"

"Don't worry, I'll be back. Just need to figure some things out and, well, right now it's old home week here and I'm the 5th wheel."

"Alright. See you in the morning?"

"I promise it." Lara flashed her shining grin at Dawn, then bent down and kissed the girl on the forehead, "Pleasant dreams Sunshine"

"Night Lara."

Lara closed the door behind her as she left the bedroom and quietly made her way downstairs. As she headed down the stairs, she reflected on why she felt so close to the younger Summers girl. Was it because she was about Dawn's age when she lost both her parents? Or was it because she saw so much of her own fighting spirit in Dawn? No, it was something else, something connected to this particular mission. She just couldn't put her finger on it.

Lara was jolted out of her thoughts as her cell phone buzzed angrily at her side; informing her she had voicemail. She stopped briefly outside the kitchen, seeing Buffy and the rest of the Scoobies, as they so fondly referred to themselves, interrogating the muscle man. Figuring they had everything under control, she slipped out into the night. Lara pulled her cell phone from her belt. "Bryce? I need you to make a few calls for me"

**Chapter Nine**

Slayer...

The word even sounded powerful to Morganna's ears. She stared at the image of the young blond girl reflected in her scrying pool and smiled sweetly to herself. How common; a vampire slayer trying to stop her. As if a mere mortal, albeit one blessed with extraordinary powers, could possibly dream of ever defeating her.

"You will be mine, Slayer. I will see you beg for your life before I crush you." Morganna whispered to herself, feeling a twinge of disgust at her own emotions. She wasn't supposed to feel emotions. She was a god, after all. But for some reason, the mere image of the blond evoked anger, jealousy, and something else; something she hadn't felt since her brother opposed her; something she was ashamed to admit to.

Fear.

Fear disgusted her. Fear was weak. She was strong; or would be if her slave ever returned with her crown.

Fear was for mortals. Damn that Merlin for banishing her to this place. Damn him for separating her from her home. Why couldn't these puny mortals see that her will would be done.

She was going home. Slayer and Tomb Raider be damned.

"Pardon the interruption, my lady." A voice began. Morganna whirled around, her eyes flashing ice.

"Stop that nonsense. God, those disgusting peely creatures used to call me that. Do you have any idea how disgustingly boring it gets, being worshipped twenty four hours a day by something that looks like it's going to die of leprosy if it doesn't see a dermatologist soon?" She swore, taking in the man's skeletal face. "Well, I guess you wouldn't, since you don't have skin on your face and all."

The man's bony teeth parted in the remnants of a grin. "I'm glad I don't have to humor you. Hoard Prime was quite clear on my instructions; and if I don't follow them to a tee you will be stuck dealing with that nincompoop Hoardac."

With a toss of her fiery blond hair, Morganna took in the man's appearance. "Relax Skeletor. I was emphatically clear on whom I was willing to work with on this one. I want my crown, and I want to go home. You and the Shadoweaver are doing a fine job of getting this for me; so far at least. Just keep Beastman from drooling on my Gucci's and we'll be peachy."

Skeletor raised his nonexistent eyebrows. "Peachy?"

"That's what the Slayer says." She turned back to the pool, her fascination with Buffy becoming apparent even to one as slow-witted as the aforementioned Beastman.

"Why are we still bothering with that one? I could easily dispose of her. It's not like she's that pesky He-Man."

"No." Morganna insisted, rage flaring inside her. "I want to watch the slayer suffer. Slowly. She doesn't get off as easy as my dear brotherdid.." She grinned, her beautiful features twisting in malice.

"Which one?" Skeletor whispered.

"Morganna, the spell to retrieve your ruby is prepared." A raspy, whispery voice filled the room as a woman in red robes floated into the room. Her feet never touched the ground. All that was visible of her face were the yellow slits that passed for eyes. The only sign that she indeed was once human was the greenish, sagging flesh on her bare arms.

"Fabulous." Morganna exclaimed. "When do we start? Where is my slave?" She stormed over to the pool and commanded. "Show me the dead slayer." The colors in the water swirled, to reveal Adora/Kendra asleep on the side of the road. A large purple van was approaching slowly on the road in the early dawn. Before her eyes, Morganna watched as a short, squat young man with dark hair and eyes, dressed completely in black, leaped out of the drivers side door. Tip-toeing around the van, he approached Adora silently, almost too quietly for a normal human. With a flash of light, his right hand went spectral; a visible outline of his hand was there, but you could see straight through it. He reached his spectral hand under the sleeping girl's arm and grabbed the crown; turning it ethereal as well. With a snap, the image went black.

"NO!!! What the Hell HAPPENED!" Morganna shrieked, grabbing Skeletor by the throat.

"It appears they young man is quite the powerful wizard, Morganna. "Shadoweaver rasped. Morganna whirled on her heels to face the floating woman.

"Well DUH!" She shouted. "You don't have to be Einstein to figure that one out!" She fumed, shaking her head as the ice in her mind built to a crescendo. With a shriek of agony, the cold blasted from her eyes, freezing the scrying pool and cracking it.

"What about the slave?" Morganna asked.

"Without the crown, my hold on the dead Slayer's spirit will weaken. Combined with Adora's ability to resist my magic, we will lose control of the girl completely and the Slayer's spirit will return to the ghost roads to make it's way to Heaven." Shadoweaver confided, the distress evident in her voice. Morganna looked from one to the other, to the sleeping Beastman on the rug on the floor.

"What are you thinking, Morganna?" Skeletor questioned. With a slight tilt to her head, Morganna allowed the smile on her lips to travel to her eyes.

'Plan B."

Lara smiled as she spoke into her cell phone, "Thanks Bryce. I knew I could count on you."

"Not a problem Lara. Everything you need should be waiting for you at the co-ordinates you gave me."

"I'll call you again to let you know how things work out. Hold down the home front for me."

"Will do Lara"

Lara Croft hung up the phone and headed down Sunnydale's main street, heading towards the city's outskirts. After her experiences of the previous two nights, the young tomb raider kept her hands on the hilts of her holstered pistols as she made her way towards the rendezvous point. She slipped from the road into the woods soon after nearing the city limits, and began hiking cross country. It took her almost fifteen minutes to reach her destination.

The full moon shined brightly in the clear sky as Lara entered the wooded clearing. Lying in the clearing, covered with the parachute which slowed it's descent, were the items Lara had requested Bryce have mailed to her. Lara grabbed the edge of the parachute and pulled it off of the black Hummvee. She opened the driver's side door and slipped behind the wheel, finding the keys in the ignition. She looked over her shoulder and saw several wooden crates sitting there, a paper note tacked to one of them. She took the note and read it, a smile coming to her face as she did.

Bryce contacted me and said you were having vampire troubles. These items should help. Our mutual friend sends his regrets in not being able to be there to help as well, but he has other pressing matters requiring his attention. If you need anything else, have Bryce contact me. Best of luck,

Whistler

Lara smiled as she slipped into the back of the Hummer and opened the two crates. Packed neatly inside were several clips of ammunition for her pistols, and knowing who sent them, she was positive they would be fairly more effective against vampires than her standard ammunition. She also found a black duster wrapped around the ammo, one which evidently had been armored for her protection. She shook her head as she opened the second crate, and gasped. Packed carefully in Styrofoam and wrapped in cloth, was an ornate Katana. Lara lifted the sword from inside its crate and carefully drew it, remembering the protective device she had seen in a similar blade. The moonlight glinted off the steel and Lara smiled, "This should even the odds a bit." She slipped into the jacket and strapped the sword to her back. Loading her pistols with the new ammunition, Lara placed the remaining crates of ammo in the trunk.

Lara slipped back around to the front of the Hummer and started the engine up, driving quickly back to the main road and heading back to Sunnydale. Lara grabbed her cell phone from her waist. "Call Giles" she said, and the phone obediently dialed the number. One hand on the wheel and one holding the phone, Lara sped down the highway, easily breaking the speed limit.

"Hello?" a groggy voice said.

"Giles? It's Lara. I have something I need to talk to you about."

"Lara?" Giles said, becoming awake suddenly, "Is everything alright?"

"Well, there was a bit of an altercation at Buffy's. Seems some blonde Terminator-type stormed in and trashed Dawn's babysitters and...."

Giles interrupted Lara, "Dawn? Is everyone ok?"

"Everyone is fine. Seems blondie was susceptible to scrawny redheads and gawky young men. By the time Buffy and I got there, the fight was over and someone named Oz was attending to the wounded."

Giles was silent for a few moments, "Did you say Oz?"

"Yes. Good thing Buffy was there too. I sorta had him at gunpoint."

"Lara, you didn't!"

"Yes, I did. And, I had every right too. But, that's not why I called. To be honest, one of the gang should be calling you soon to fill you in on everything. It's something Dawn said to me."

"Lara? What is it? I've never known you to be hesitant about anything."

"Dawn said someone named Jonathan was there."

"He was there too? I'd better get to Buffy's before something really bad happens."

"I'll pick you up Giles. I'm on Main Street now."

"Pick me up? Did you rent a car?"

Lara feigned innocence, "Come now, Mr. Giles. You know me better than that. When did Lady Lara Croft ever rent something when she could call in some favors and get herself something REALLY fun to drive."

Giles's sigh of exasperation could be heard over the phone. "Fine. Give me 10 minutes. I'll get dressed and call Buffy and then we can head over."

"See you in a few minutes then Giles"

Lara moved to hang up but Giles stopped her, "Oh, and Lara?"

"Yes?"

"Pick up some doughnuts on your way."

"And deprive Xander of his role as sugar provider? Never! Besides, you don't like sprinkles."

Lara grinned as she hung up the phone and made her way to Giles's home. For a sleepy little town in Southern California, things certainly were interesting. As her headlights swept the road in front of her, Lara noticed a still form sleeping on the side of the road. It appeared to be a girl, about Buffy's age, with long blond hair. She was unconscious. Lara figured her at first for one of the local homeless, and pulled over to leave a blanket. As an English noble, she definitely could afford to be charitable to those less fortunate.

As she stepped out of the car, Lara noticed that the girl was scantily clad in a red leotard and boots. Her eyes lit with recognition as Lara placed the woman before her as her and Dawn's savior at the Bronze. Lightly shaking her shoulder, Lara called "Adora!" But the woman was fast asleep, or unconscious. Lara was unable to wake her.

Maybe she's hurt...Lara thought. She checked for a pulse. It was weak, but there. Deftly, the Tomb Raider scooped the unconscious princess of Eternia into her arms and deposited her slumbering form on the back seat of the Hummer.

"Guess it's one more for the party. Hope Buffy doesn't mind a few crashers." Lara said as she cranked the music in hopes of waking the woman in the backseat.

On second thought, doughnuts did sound awfully good.

**Chapter Ten**

Buffy entered the kitchen just as Xander and Oz were putting the finishing touches on tying the still unconscious muscle man to the chair. She looked over at Willow, "I think they've made him safe for now. Will, you can release him from your spell."

Willow nodded and leaned next to the man's ear, whispering into it, "Awaken". As she stood back up, the man's ice blue eyes slowly opened.

Xander stood above him, arms crossed interrogator style. "All right Mr. Terminator," he began, slowly leaning in so he was eye to eye with his captive. " Who are you and why exactly did you come rushing in here, swinging that fancy sword of yours?"

He-Man shook his head to clear the cobwebs from it, "Huh?" He asked. Xander reeled back as if to slap him hard across the face. Oz reached out and intercepted his palm seconds before it made contact. "Woah, lay off the Cobra Commander tactics." He insisted.

"Sorry," Xander said with a sheepish shrug. "I got a little too into this." He looked at the bound muscle man and smiled with satisfaction at his work. "Well, what are you waiting for?" The man continued to stare blankly. "SPEAK!" Xander roared getting far up in his face. Buffy grabbed him by the collar and hauled him into a nearby chair. "Down boy, or I'll put you back on doughnut detail." She turned to the man with a smile. "Now, would you care to tell me why I arrived at my home this evening to find it trashed and this muscle-bound monkey' as I believe my sister called you lying on the floor?"

"My name is He-Man, and I came here to help you people"

Oz looked at the man, arms crossed across his chest, "Right"

Xander began circling around He-Man, "Came here to help us? With what? Getting bigger biceps? Perfecting that six-pack stomach?"

"Xander..."Buffy cautioned.

Xander continued to berate He-Man. "Here's two words for you, leather skin; Self Tanner. You're bound to get skin-cancer with all the fake and baking you must do to keep up that tan."

"Xander..." Willow repeated warningly with a quick glace at Buffy.

"And what kind of a hokey-pokey name is He-Man, anyway? How long did it take you to come up with that one, brainiac? A minute? An hour maybe? "  
"That's it." Oz growled. With a quick movement, he clapped his hand over Xander's mouth and looked him in the eye. "Chill man, don't make me go all furry on you."

"You won't." Buffy remarked.

Oz smiled. "Yeah, I know, but it's cool to say anyway." He looked at He-Man solemnly. "Besides, I don't think pissing him off is a good idea. Chances are he doesn't need to be in that chair, but hasn't broken the ropes out of politeness."

"What makes you say that?" Willow wondered. Oz shrugged non-commitally. "Look at him."

"Good point." Buffy said with a smile. He-Man nodded in agreement. "Okay, He-Man," Buffy began, rolling her eyes at the ridiculousness of the name. "Why exactly are you here? And why did you decide to trash my living room."

"He didn't!" Willow interrupted. "That Adora person Dawnny mentioned did."

Buffy grimaced. "Great. We now have two rogue slayers on our hands. One dead, one alive."

Willow's face drew in shock. "So, Dawn was right. Faith is dead, and Adora is the next slayer. But what made her go all destructo?"

Buffy looked confused. "Will, WHAT are you talking about?" She paused, and then remembered the conversation from that afternoon. "Oh, right. Well, we don't know about the Faith front yet, but apparently Adora has been possessed by the ghost of Kendra."

Xander's eyes widened in understanding. "That explains it! She recognized me and Willow, and she did have that really mixed Caribbean accent."

He-Man, having easily slipped his ropes during the preceding conversation, stood up and cleared his throat. Buffy whirled around at the sound, having forgotten that they did have a hostage, sort of. "Wait, how did you-"

"They don't call me He-Man for nothing." He replied with a charming smile. "Now, I do believe the lady asked me a question." He said as he took in Buffy's disheveled form. Noticing a small trickle of blood running down the Slayers arm, He-Man grabbed a paper towel. "You're hurt." He stated.

"Obviously." Xander said as Willow shot him her resolve face.

"It's nothing, really." Buffy said, a becoming blush tinging her cheek as the attractive and barely dressed man gently pressed the towel to her bleeding arm. "I kind of had a little trouble on patrol."

"Nothing serious, I hope." He asked, staring deeply into her eyes.

"No...", Buffy's voice trailed off as her gaze met his. This man had eyes almost as blue as Spike's...

"Buffy? He wanted to answer your question?" Willow interrupted.

Buffy broke the stare abruptly. "Right!" She looked at him intently. "What did I ask you again?"

He-Man laughed good-heartedly, his laughter bouncing off the walls of the demolished kitchen. "You asked me what I was doing here."

"Right!" Buffy smiled, waiting for his answer. None came. ""Well? Why are you here."

He-man took a seat."I was sent to protect the Key."

Buffy looked at He-Man in a new light. It had been some time since she had heard that particular phrase, "The Key...did those monks send you?"

"Monks? No...the Sorceress sent me."

"The Sorceress. That's the voice Dawnny heard!" Willow exclaimed. Buffy looked around, astonished. "Dawn's hearing voices now?" She groaned, putting her head in her hands. "God, there's no way I can afford a psychiatrist on what I make at the Doublemeat Palace!"

"No, it's okay. That's how she contacts people. Her powers force her to remain in Castle Greyskull, but she is extremely powerful as well as telepathic. She probably used telepathy to reach your sister. Through the stone."

"What stone?" Buffy asked.

"The Stone of Earthly magic." He-Man replied. Buffy looked puzzled. "Your sister wears it around her neck."

Xander snapped his head up. "The pearl Lara gave her this afternoon."

"So that's why you're here, to get my sister's jewelry?"

"No, my sister and I were sent to---"

"YOUR SISTER?!" Buffy, Xander and Willow exclaimed.

"Yes." He-Man began. He took a deep breath before continuing, suspecting what would inevitably come next. "Her name is She-Ra."

"Go figure." Oz interjected.

"We were sent by the Sorceress for several reasons, including the pearl, but we were told not to contact any of you until after the Sorceress had reached the girl."

"So that's why you were here tonight."

"Yes." He paused. "We also need to recover the Ruby of Eternia, and restore the pearl to my sister's Sword."

Xander laughed, "And after you do all that I suppose you'll have to take the Ring of Power to Mount Doom and throw it in!"

"Okay, so I understand why you were outside my house, but what happened here tonight?" Buffy asked.

"That Adora chick kicked my ass. That's what happened." Xander said.

"I got that part, Xand." Buffy said with a smile at her friend. "What happened before that? With Dawn?"

"Dawn was in the kitchen. She seemed fine." Xander said. Willow laughed dryly. "Xander, she was petrified when she came in here. How could have missed that?"

Xander blushed, "Oh, right. Forgot. The 90210 marathon was on, and between Jennie Garth, Tiffani Theissen and Shannen Dougherty I was a little..."

"Distracted?" Buffy asked.

"To say the least." Xander finished.

Buffy shook her head, "You watch too much TV, Xander" she then turned her head to He-Man, "Why don't you take it from the top?"

"The top of what?"

"Oh boy, this is going to be a long night...Begin at the beginning."

Buffy, Willow, and the two boys took seats, listening to He-Man weave his tale. "Thirty years ago, Queen Marlena's spaceship from earth crash landed on the planet of Eternia. She was rescued from the wreckage by Man-At-Arms and Prince Randor. They fell in love and married..."

Buffy held up her hand, "Whoah, Whoah, Whoah. Who the hell are Queen Marlena and Prince Rudolph? I don't remember hearing their names in History 101."

"Maybe we should wait for Giles to get here. He knows all about this other worldly stuff." Willow suggested.

"Good idea, Will." Xander said. As he stood and walked behind the chair where He-Man again sat. A wicked smile spread across his lips. "Till then, you are mine to toy with, Bicep Brain." He added with a very BAD German accent.

"XANDER!!" The girls shrieked in unison.

"What?!" He shrieked, jumping back. He looked at the girls, and noticed Willow was wearing her resolve face for the second time that night. He-Man laughed again and looked Xander directly in the eye. "Should I let you tie me up again?"

"Are you into that sort of thing?" Oz asked."Oz!?" Buffy groaned. Oz blushed. "Not that I am or anything. Just ask Willow. I'm strictly cuddly."

"For the sake of those of us who aren't getting any lately, can we please drop the subject of sex?" Xander said.

"Sure." Oz replied.

"I mean, sure, I've done it. Can we say Faith, Anya, and let's not forget the Praying Mantis teacher who was hot for me..."

"Way too much sharing Xander." Willow said. Xander dropped his eyes to the floor and said with a sigh, "Doughnuts anyone?"

"Beat you to the punch, spyboy." A sultry British accented voice said as the back door opened and Lara and Giles entered the kitchen. Xander's head snapped up at the sound of the lady's voice and he turned as red as his bowling shirt.

"I do hope we're not intruding, but Lara reached me on her phone after she, uh, contacted some friends in L.A." Giles said.

"Whistler sends his love, Buffy." Lara tossed at the blonde.

"Always nice to hear from an old friend." Buffy commented dryly, thinking back to her encounter with Whistler and his half-vampire friend during yet another of Angel's transformations into Angelus. Xander, meanwhile, was staring out the remains of the back window.

"Is that a HUMMER out there?" He asked, turning to face the girls.

"A girl can never have too many toys." Lara said as she dropped casually into the remaining empty kitchen chair. "Meanwhile, I think I have something that belongs to you." She reached into her black leather trench coat and pulled out the handkerchief wrapped crown. With a wave of her hand she idly tossed it on the table.

"Then you have Adora." He-Man asked at the same time Buffy exclaimed, "Where did you find that?"

""If you're referring to our blonde friend in the red leotard, yes, she is sleeping peacefully tied up in the backseat of my car." Lara said. "As for this, well, a friend gave it to me." She finished, inclining her head to the door to the living room. There, leaning against the frame, stood Jonathan Levinson.

In an instant, Willow's hair went from fire engine red to jet-black. With a growl of rage, she charged towards the door-

And straight into a half wolfed out Oz. He encircled her waist with his arms, using his powerful strength to contain her fury. Slowly, Willow's hair regained its sunny tint. Tears streamed down her cheeks as she sobbed with abandon into Oz's furry shoulder. Oz grimmaced as he looked the Slayer in the eye.

"Remember I said I needed to tell you something?" He growled with a shrug.

**Chapter Eleven**

"How could you bring him here!" Willow screamed hysterically as she paced the length of her room. "Oz, you of all people should know what his being here would do to me."

Oz watched her retrace her steps from the door to the window. One, two, three, four, five, six, turn. One, two, three, four, five, six, turn. "That's a pretty interesting dance you're doing there, Will." Oz commented. Willow whirled around to face him, her blue eyes getting a decidedly navy tint to them.

"**Oz, if** **you were anyone else you're innards would be round my neck like jewelry by now.**" Willow's voice echoed off the walls of her room. Oz backed down, holding his visibly human hands up in a sign of retreat.

"Hey, it's okay. You know me, keep it funny when you don't know what else to do." Oz offered as a token explanation. He watched as Willow's eyes cleared, her hair remaining red. "Besides, this whole evil goth girl thing just isn't you."

"What do you know about me anymore!?" Willow screeched. "You picked up and left about two years ago, and except for one visit when you freaked because I'd moved on, none of us ever hear from you at all. Ever."

Oz interrupted her tirade, "Whoah. I left because you chose her over me and I couldn't deal with it. The wolf couldn't deal with it. God Willow, I almost KILLED her on you, and I couldn't do that to you. I could never hurt you like that."

"Couldn't hurt me? You **CHEATED** on me with that, that bitch, Veruca, and then you deserted me and ran out. What kind of a person does that? You left me when I needed you the most. I never hear from you. You supposedly love me, but you couldn't even be bothered enough to call when you learned about the death of someone I—I---"Willow's voice broke off in a sob as she collapsed to the floor in a heap. "My God," she wept, "Tara..."

Oz crossed the distance to her on the floor. "I know, Will, I know." He said as he pulled her gently into his lap. "Believe me, if I could take it all back, I would. But I've mastered the wolf. He doesn't control me anymore. I control him. And I came as soon as I heard about Tara. Believe me, it's a long way from Mexico to Sunnydale. News doesn't travel all that fast."

Willow looked up into his eyes. "That's where you were? Mexico?"

Oz nodded. "I learned a lot from the people down there. I was studying the Aztec gods, and I noticed a legend about one of them who was a man that could change form into a wolf at will in order to devour his enemies. It hit a little close to home, if you get my drift. Anyway, I went to this little village to study that story, and found out that the man was a werewolf. I studied everything I could find about him, but nothing worked. That's when I ran into Jonathan."

"At first, I was a little put off, I mean, we never really were all that close, but he and this other guy didn't seem to want to make waves or anything, just keep a low profile. But Jonathan found out what I was studying. I kinda wolfed out on him, and well, the rest is history."

"You brought him here because you attacked him?" Willow gasped. Oz laughed.

"No, I brought him here because he managed to figure out the spell the guy in the legend cast to make him able to control the wolf completely. Jonathan modified it to modern day, and also so I can use the wolf to fight for, well, good, for lack of a better term. We've been hunting down some minor evils in Mexico for the past month or so, but then I heard about Tara, and when I told Jonathan I was leaving he said he was coming with me. Something about him wanting to make amends. I swear, Will, he didn't tell me about Warren or his part in this until after we were back in Sunnydale."

Willow smiled. "I believe you." Oz looked at her fondly, a million memories flooding his mind. "Any particular reason?" He asked as he pushed a wayward lock of red hair behind her ear. Willow giggled like a schoolgirl before answering.

"Yes. First off, because you're Oz and you'd never lie to me." She sat up and hugged him tightly. "And secondly, because that's the most I've ever heard you say at once."

"So tell me again why I shouldn't let my new friend with the hokey name crush your bones into powder?" Buffy asked Jonathan, a bemused smile on her face. She truly felt so sorry for him. Jonathan now sat in He-Man's vacated seat. Xander, having resumed commando mode, had promptly taken the liberty of tying him to the chair. Lara, Buffy, and He-Man now stood in a triangle around the small man, who looked decidedly terrified. A quick wink at He-Man told him that Buffy had no intentions of hurting this pathetic being, just scaring him. He-Man smiled, catching onto the game, and picked up a piece of the broken table in his hand. With a quick snap of his wrist, he instantly crushed it to powder. Lara needed no hint as to Buffy's true intentions, and she smiled sweetly at Jonathan; her sunglasses were perched on the end of her nose so her eyes could be seen as she idly polished one of her pistols.

Xander, who was once again designated to doughnut duty, stood at the counter arranging the pastries on a plate. He knew what Jonathan had to be feeling; after all, these were some pretty intimidating people to be dealing with. All Jonathan ever wanted was friends. He just kept picking the wrong ways of making them. Maybe when this particular apocalypse was over, Xander could teach Jonathan how to fit in with this crowd.

Maybe then he'd finally get to do something besides get the doughnuts and tie people up.

"I believe my friend here asked you a question, maggot." Lara spat out in a pathetically poor California accent, trying to be tougher than usual. Somehow, upper-crust British accents weren't all that intimidating unless you were James Bond.

Jonathan's eyes darted from Buffy's stake, to Lara's pistol, and finally settled on the kick-ass sword strapped to He-Man's back and back to the sword hilt which peeked from beneath the black duster Lara wore. His eyes filled with tears.

"I told you, I wanted to make things right. I just wanted to help Oz, and then the feather lady started appearing in my dreams, and telling me to fix some sword." He looked pointedly at He-Man. "Is your sword broken?" Jonathan took a deep breath. "Cause it looks, you know, all Conan the Barbarian like and all that."

"Feather lady?" Buffy asked.

"Yeah." Jonathan said. "She was really pretty, and she had an eagle on her head and feathers for hair. She had this Marilyn Monroe type voice too."

"That wasn't her hair. It was part of her cape." He-Man stated. "You claim to be getting visions from The Sorceress?"

Jonathan's eyes widened. "You believe me?! Thank God! I Thought I was just going crazy, or having some sick kind of porno dream."

He –Man advanced slowly. "What was that?"

"But a good, respectful type of dream. She stayed fully clothed, I swear!"

"Jonathan-"Buffy started. He turned to face her. "Never mind, too easy." She looked at He-Man. "This Sorceress lady is the same one who's been contacting my sister?"

"It would appear so." He-Man replied.

"Good!" Buffy said enthusiastically. "Now we have some place to start in the morning."

Lara politely excused herself. "I'm going to go help Giles with the other sleeping crazy. If you'll excuse me." Buffy turned. "There's some chains downstairs, if you'll think they'll hold her." Buffy called after her.

"On second thought, maybe I should watch Adora tonight. I think she would have trouble fighting me." He-Man said sadly. Buffy frowned.

"Because you're so big?" She joked.

"No." He-Man replied. He took a deep breath, and placed a hand on his sword. With a sigh, he allowed the magic inside him to return to the sword. Buffy watched as he transformed from a scantily clad muscle man into a still fairly ripped blond man in a white shirt, a purple furry speedo, purple tights, vest and boots. "She's my sister."

Xander shook his head in disbelief. "This is too much for me at this hour. I'm passing out the food and then passing out. "He playfully shoved the plate of pastries down the counter; just out of Jonathan's reach, had he not been tied to the chair. "Buff, I'm tired. I'll see you tomorrow." He leaned in and kissed Buffy on the cheek. "Uh, Lara. If the couch is too lumpy, you're welcome to my bed tonight." He generously offered.

"Will you be occupying it?" Lara teased him with a playful smile, her true accent having returned to her speech pattern.

"Only if you'd like me to." Xander quipped back, having started to become accustomed to Lara's flirting.

"Then by all means, join me-"Lara let her voice trail off as Xander turned to face her with a wide grin.

"You'll be quite comfortable on the floor, I believe." She finished with a chuckle. Lara sauntered out of the kitchen, but not before she saw Xander's face momentarily fall from her last put down.

And not before she had time to regret saying it.

As she strode from the kitchen to the living room, Lara noticed that the front door was still ajar. She stepped over the broken furniture to close it when a cold wind whipped in from outside. Pushing against what was left of the door with all her strength, Lara thought she heard a whispery voice speak to her:

"You too shall pay, Tomb Raider, if you dare to cross me."

Lara shook her head briefly and looked around the room. She no longer stood in the desecrated living room, but back at her manor in England. The Book of Sevens, the tome she had found the legend of Morganna the Misbegotten in, lay open on her lap. As she watched, the legend of the crown erased itself from the page. Lara's memories from the past day began to fade as well. She was wondering why she had even opened this book when her eyes fell on the picture next to the crown. The image of a girl, sixteen, maybe seventeen, with long flowing dark hair and deep brown eyes was taking shape on the page. Around her neck she wore a single pearl on a gold chain. The colors in the pearl began to swirl, and a feathery voice spoke to her.

"Do not stray from the Path, Lara Croft. You will be needed to protect the Key to the Dimensions. You will be needed to save us all."

"Why me?!" Lara questioned.

"Patience, my child. All will be revealed in good time. The Watcher knows more than he says. He too, will play an important role. He alone holds the knowledge to combat this evil. And the other young man, the one with the wonderful wit, do not let him fall away. He is irreplaceable. Without him...all is lost."

"She lies...don't be fooled by her..." A raspy voice whispered in Lara's ear. "You don't need to go to California. You are needed here. There is more work for you here. Whistler needs you. As does Bryce. Don't leave. Grave danger will befall you. You mustn't—"

"Bloody hell, will you shut it?!" Lara shouted. "Honestly, if I'm going to be contacted telepathically, do you really think I'm going to listen to the voice that sounds like it came from the ninth level of hell?!" Lara shook her head. "Christ, I'm starting to talk like Buffy now." She thought to herself.

In the back of her mind, Lara heard the feathery voice laugh. "Be patient, child, and all will sort itself out in time. Remember, you are stronger than her..."

**SLAM...**

The remainder of the front door closed, with a bang, shaking Lara from her vision. Quickly, she grabbed a pen and paper off the remains of an end table to write down what she had just seen. Writing down her dreams was a habit that Giles had gotten her into, back when she was a little girl

Adam stared silently at his sisters sleeping form. Adora lay strapped to the bed, with Adam at her side. He looked fondly at his sister, who seemed so peaceful in sleep. It was hard to believe that a few hours ago, she had single-handedly destroyed two rooms in the Summers home.

"I promise you, sis, I will find out what is wrong and I'll fix it. No Matter what."

**Chapter Twelve**

Xander entered the living room as Lara put the finishing touches on the details of her dream. Lara looked up, a smile on her face again. "Xander.."

Xander tried to look happy, but still reeled from Lara's put down of a few moments earlier. "Oh, hello Lara." He was curt, but not too cool. That's it. Harris. Don't let her know how you feel.

Lara's smile faded as she picked up on his true emotions. "Look, Xander, I'd like to apologize for what I said earlier. It was wrong of me to lead you on like that and then say what I said. You deserve better."

Xander shrugged, "It's alright Lara. I'm used to it by now. My luck with women has never been what you would call spectacular."

"Oh, I find that hard to believe, a witty, attractive young man like yourself."

Xander blushed at Lara's compliments. "Seriously?"

"Seriously." Lara said, her full lips parting in a sexy smile.

Xander blushed even deeper. "You're not possessed, or anything, right?" he paused. "Cause I have this nasty history of attracting women who are somehow demonic."

Lara threw her head back in uproarious laughter. "I admit I do have my dark side, but I've never gotten all horny---in the demonic sense of the word that is."

Xander's smile returned to its normal, relaxed state. He felt it only polite to change the subject at this point. "So, where'd the Hummer come from?"

Lara smiled again, "Well, I made a few calls, called in some favors. I'm a fairly well connected person. There **are** advantages to the Lady Croft deal."

"I can see that." Xander said as he noticed the sword on Lara's back for the first time. "I guess the sword came with the car?"

"Actually, it was sent to me by a friend. Meant to be used against vampires."

"A friend who tends to, uh whistle a lot?" Xander asked with a smug grin.

"Precisely." Lara replied.

"Vampires." Xander sighed. "Well, we certainly have our share of those around here." He took in Lara's leather-clad form in one final glance, wondering if she was even slightly serious about staying the night. "Well, I'd better get going. Looks like tomorrow is going to be a busy day and I need my sleep." And with that Xander began moving towards the door.

"Xander..." Lara said, her voice almost a whisper. Xander stopped and looked at her as she continued, "Does that offer of staying with you still stand?"

Xander, wary of their last conversation involving this topic, looked at her, "Yeah. The offer is still good. You're welcome to the bed. I can spend the night on my couch. You can do with a good nights sleep too."

Lara smiled sweetly and tossed a glance at the couch where the Slayer lay dozing lightly. "Well, Buffy's couch is obviously pretty comfortable, especially compared to sleeping in tents and such, but it's not a bed. As long as I won't be an imposition, I think I'll accept your invitation." And she quickly wrote a note to Buffy explaining where she went before following Xander out the front door, "Besides, I think Buffy's living room is going to be a bit drafty tonight"

"Don't remind me. I'm the one who will have to fix that door tomorrow."

Lara smiled, as she grabbed her guns, shoving them into her duffle bag. She threw on her new duster and stepped next to Xander, "You? You mean you're a handyman as well as cute and witty?"

Xander blushed again, "Actually, I run my own construction company."

"Really? Well, I must remember that! Never know when someone needs work done on her house." And she smiled again as she led him out to her vehicle and they climbed in, heading off toward Xander's home.

Buffy stretched as she awoke with a start. Everyone was safe and sound, for the moment. Idly, she picked up the piece of paper perched on the end table. A small smile spread across her lips as she read the words inscribed on it.

Buffy,

Seeing you napping made me realize how exhausted my English bones are in all this California sunshine. I didn't want to wake you, and wouldn't feel really comfortable taking your bed without asking. Xander, however, has offered to sleep on his couch for the evening. Where he sleeps and exactly how much sleep he'll actually get are still debatable. We'll bring breakfast in the morning. See you then.

Lara

"Well, what do you know!" Buffy remarked to herself. "Xander might actually get some from an actual always been human woman."

"Did you say something, Buffy?" Giles said as he came down the stairs.

"What were you up to?" She replied, easily sidestepping his question.

"Oh, um, I was just checking on Willow and Dawn. They are both resting comfortably. Oz is on the floor in Willow's room. He was pouring over some books on the History of Middle Earth, and the legends of King Arthur, and I guess he nodded off."

"Have we found anything yet?"

Giles pushed his glasses up on his nose in his trademark move. "There are some things that have been confirmed. Buffy, we need to keep the crown away from Dawn."

"Why? She's not going all klepto again, is she?" Buffy said with a touch of worry in her eyes.

"No, no, nothing of the sort." Giles reassured her. "The crown belonged to a woman named Morganna the Misbegotten."

"We know all this all ready."

"But you don't know this; the power of the crown can only be harnessed by a woman with Slayer abilities."

"It can only be used by me? Or Faith?"

"Who is quite alive and well, still resting in her jail cell."

"Okay, so what does this have to do with Dawn?" Buffy said, the days trials taking its tolls on her exhausted body.

"Buffy, when you died, this last time that is, another Slayer was not called."

"I know." Buffy said. "Because Faith is still alive."

"Yes and no." Giles said. "Faith is still alive, but she is no longer the active Slayer. After the incident when she swapped souls with you, the Watcher's Council cast a spell that rendered her calling obsolete until the time of her redemption."

"Which is what?" Buffy asked. Giles sighed wearily. "Never mind that. Faith's powers will return to her in full force once she is truly ready to serve her calling for good once more." He sank down into the couch. "That's beside the point. When you died the second time, a new slayer was called into service. She, however, has also been...deactivated, since your...return."

Buffy began to catch on. "Who was it, Giles? Who did they call?"

"The Council informed me that Dawn was the new Slayer."

Buffy's face went white. "No."

"I'm afraid it's true, Buffy. Your sister is a Slayer; well, at least a potential Slayer now. She was created from you, after all."

"Does she know?"

Giles shook his head. "Let's keep it that way." Buffy answered as she started for the stairs. "Buffy, there's something else you should know."

"What? That my sister is not only facing certain death in her immediate future, but the sky is also falling, right Chicken Little?"

"Lara was trained as a potential slayer as well." Giles Spat out at once. "I trained her myself. We thought she would be the next called after India, but it was you. It took all of us by surprise, thus Merrik's surprise trip to Los Angeles and your lack of preparation for the job from the start."

"Thought I recognized a couple of her moves." Buffy commented.

"She didn't believe me about the vampires any more than you believed Merrik." Giles remarked with his trademark lopsided grin. "Then, she met Blade."

Buffy's eyes widened, "That explains a lot. I was curious about her easy acceptance when we first met. Also explains her connections with Whistler." She yawned out of sheer exhaustion. "Okay, so keep the crown away from Lara as well. Anything else I need before I fall into another dream haunted sleep?"

"Not that I can think of at the moment."

Giles stifled a yawn, slipped his glasses from his face, and rubbed his eyes. His yawn triggered one in Buffy. "Then, let's get Lara alone at some point tomorrow and fill her in on what's going on. She's old enough to handle it." She smiled, then leaned over and gently hugged Giles, "Have I mentioned how happy I am you're not in England right now?"

"Not in the last few weeks."

Buffy smiled. "I am. And on that note, I sleep." With heavy heart, the current and only active Slayer climbed the stairs to her room.

**Chapter Thirteen**

Commander Jonathan Levinson raced through the corridors of Deep Space Nine, phaser rifle in hand. At his side, ran his life long friend, Captain Benjamin Sisko. Changeling infiltrators had taken over the station and were holding several of the crew hostage near the fusion reactor. Soon after, Jem'Hadar soldiers began transporting onto the station. Jonathan and Benjamin had barely made it out of Ops in time.

"What's the plan Jonathan?" Sisko asked.

"Simple. We get down to the reactor core, free the others, and take the station back. What's a few Jehm'Hadar?"

Sisko laughed, a smile coming to his dark face. The two turned a corner, and Jonathan quickly shoved his friend to the deck as two Jem'Hadar opened fire. With a scream, Jonathan raced down the corridor, firing madly, dropping the two enemy soldiers. "Come on Ben!" he shouted as he reached the turboshaft. Sisko soon joined him and the two began the climb down to the station's fusion core. Soon after, they reached their destination. Jonathan shook his head as he observed the situation. A dozen Jem'Hadar stood with the two changelings, watching over their prisoners. "Dammit." Jonathan swore, "Looks like Worf and O'Brien tried something. They're both unconscious. Odo is just sitting there. And, they got Kira and Dax off separate from the others."

Sisko looked at his friend, knowing a plan was forthcoming. "Well?" he asked.

Jonathan smiled, "Well, you give me cover fire from up here and I'll take out the Jem'Hadar. Without them, Odo should be free to help us. Then we free Nerys and Jadzia."

Sisko nodded and Jonathan made his way down to the deck silently. Phaser fire erupted from above him, dropping two of the guards as Sisko opened fire. Jonathan shouted and in quick succession dropped 6 more. As the soldiers began to fall, Odo leaped into action and forced the two changelings into their liquid state. Seeing their gods taken out, the other Jem'Hadar stood frozen, only to fall to Sisko and Jonathan's attack. Soon after, Jonathan was wrapped in the warm embrace of Major Kira Nerys and Lieutenant Jadzia Dax.

"Oh, Jonathan, that was so brave. You saved us all" Jadzia purred into his right ear.

"Yes. How can we ever repay you?" Kira whispered into his other ear. Jonathan was very aware of their warm bodies pressed against his.

Jonathan Levinson...

Jonathan looked around as a whispery voice spoke his name. Jadzia and Kira continued to fawn attention on him and he forgot about the voice.

Jonathan Levinson...hear me.

Jonathan looked around again and as he did, the willing forms of Kira Nerys and Jadzia Dax faded. He looked surprised for a moment, only to see Sisko and the others vanish, soon followed by Deep Space Nine itself. As Jonathan stared everything became white. The voice returned.

"The time is ripe for you to restore the Pearl of Earthly Magic to the Sword of Power. Events are in motion that will need the magic contained in the sword and the courage of she who is chosen to wield it."

Jonathan looked around the whiteness as the whispery voice spoke. He looked down and saw his Starfleet uniform was gone, replaced by the black jeans and shirt he wore in his waking hours. As he recognized this, everything that had happened came flooding back.

"You! You're the one the muscle man called The Sorceress!"

A woman materilazed before Jonathan. Her very feminine figure was barely covered in a white leotard. She wore blue high heeled boots which came to just below her knees, and upon her head was an eagle shaped helm, which connected to a lovely cloak of white and blue and brown feathers.

"Yes, ", she said, her voice still whispery. "The muscle man you speak of is He-Man, Champion of Eternia. He and his sister were sent here by me to recover the Pearl of Earthly Magic and restore the Sword of Power, retrieve the Gem of Eternia, and to protect the Key of the Dimensions."

Jonathan shook his head, a bit confused and overwhelmed. "Restoring the Sword of Power...that's what you told me to do in my other dreams."

"Yes. The Slayer's sister carries the Pearl. It must be restored to the Sword carried by Adora."

"Adora. She's the blonde who trashed Buffy's home."

The Sorceress nodded. "Yes. Her body and mind are not her own. There are two trapped souls within her body and only the magic of the restored sword can free them both from the spell which enthralls them."

Jonathan looked at the beautiful woman before him, "Well, I came here to help. And, if you say that restoring the sword will help Buffy and the others, then I guess I'll restore the sword. Thing is, how?"

The Sorceress smiled sweetly. "It is simpler than you believe, Jonathan Levinson." And with that, she began to explain the procedure to Jonathan.

Adam sat watch by his sister's bed in the basement of the Summers' home. Concern filled his face. Something had happened to her. Buffy and the others had spoken of her attacking those inside the house. Of her demanding the Crown and taking it. And then there was her assault on him. The only time in his life he had ever seen his sister act like that was back on Etheria, when they first met, and she was in the thrall of the Horde. It had taken her using her sword's magic to break her of that spell. But, the sword was broken now. The pearl was missing.

Adam brushed a lock of his sister's blonde hair from her face, and suddenly he remembered the young man he had helped question. He said the Sorceress had contacted him to restore the Sword. It only took the Prince of Eternia a few seconds to reach his decision.

Adam quietly crept up the basement stairs. He slipped into the living room, where Jonathan slept uneasily, still tied to his chair. Quickly, Adam untied the young man and woke him. Jonathan looked up, immediately awake. "She said you would be coming."

"Who did?" Adam asked.

"The Sorceress. She told me how to fix your sister's sword and to free her. I need you to get me the Pearl that Lara Croft gave to Dawn Summers" a strange, confident tone was in the young man's voice as he spoke, "I'll meet you in the basement and we will correct this."

Adam nodded. He made his way upstairs, to Dawn's room. Quietly, he slipped in. Dawn slept peacefully, her hair falling over her face. The necklace which Lara gave her hung around her neck. A smile was on the young girl's face. Adam looked at her for a moment, wondering how he was going to remove the necklace without awakening her.

Dawn Summers smiled, her hand encased in her sister's as they strode through the park. There, in a sunlit clearing, sat their mother, pulling all kinds of delicacies out of a picnic basket and placing them on the white and red checkered blanket she sat upon.

Joyce Summers smiled at her two children as she placed more food on the blanket. "Dawn. Buffy. Lunch is ready"

Dawn slipped her hand from her sister's grasp and ran across the clearing, wrapping her mother in a fierce hug. "Mom! It looks delicious!" she said, and immediately sat down, and began to eat.

Out of nowhere, Buffy, was sitting next to her sister, munching on some pretzels. Dawn looked from her sister to her mom and back again

"Dawn. There's something you need to do. Something very important" Joyce said

"What is it Mom?"

Joyce's hand reached out and pointed to the necklace around Dawn's neck. "You must give that to Adam."

Dawn looked confused for a moment. How did her mom know about Adam? She wouldn't meet Adam until after Mom was...Suddenly, the picnic and the clearing were gone, leaving Dawn with just her mom, who was clad now in a shining white gown, a heavenly light behind her.

Tears came to Dawn's face. "Mom..."

Joyce wrapped her daughter in a warm embrace, "It's alright Dawn. I'm here for you. I'll always be here for you, even when you can't see me. But, you need to do this."

"But, Lara gave me this."

"I know Sunshine. And I know how much you like her, too. But it's needed to help save Adora and Kendra. Lara will understand."

Dawn looked up at her mother, and wiped tears away, "I trust you Mom. I'll do what I can."

Joyce smiled, kissing her daughter on the forehead, "I know you will, Sunshine. Now, go help your sister save the world"

Dawn stepped back, "But, I don't want to leave you Mom."

"Go Sunshine. I will always be with you." And with that, Joyce Summers faded away and Dawn awoke to see Adam looking at her.

"Hello there." Dawn whispered, a smile on her face. "I guess you came here for this." And with that she slipped the necklace from around her neck and handed it to Adam.

The Prince of Eternia was surprised at Dawn's quick turning over of the necklace. "Thank you Dawn. This is very important."

"I know. And, I'm coming with you to help." And Dawn slipped form beneath the covers and followed Adam back down to the basement.

**Chapter Fourteen**

Adora's body lay on the bed as Jonathan stared at her. She was a very beautiful woman, and for a moment, he could hear Warren's voice prompting him to take advantage of her unconscious form.

"No. I listened to you before and look what happened. Never again."

Warren appeared next to Jonathan. "Wimp. Wuss. Nerd. COWARD. I never should have included you in with me and Andrew. You haven't got the guts to take what is yours. She's beautiful and not going anywhere."

Jonathan looked at his dead friend, "Leave me alone. I came here to help"

"And left Andrew all alone in Mexico while you ran off with your new pal Oz."

"Andrew is fine. He told me to go."

"And now you're here playing hero. Well, you won't be able to do it. You'll fail, again, because you don't have the guts. Just like when you chickened out in the clock tower."

"I didn't chicken out. I grew up. It would have been stupid to kill myself."

"You're hopeless" and Warren moved into Jonathan's face, "Why I ever thought you could open the..." and suddenly he vanished as Adam and Dawn crept down the stairs.

"Jonathan? Are you alright?" Dawn asked sweetly.

Jonathan looked a bit nervous, his face full of sweat. "Yeah...I'm alright. Night time jitters I guess."

"Here is the Pearl" Adam said, passing Jonathan the necklace. With a smile, Jonathan took it and placed it atop Adora's sword, right over the open spot where it would rest. Jonathan lit several candles and placed them in a circle around the sword.

"Athena, Goddess of Wisdom and Battle, restore to this weapon the skill and power with which you gifted it" Jonathan waved his hand over the sword, the candlelight reflecting off it growing brighter as he spoke.

"Apollo, God of Healing and the Sun, restore the gifts you gave your champion so long ago." Again, Jonathan's hand went over the blade and the light from the candles increased.

"Hades, Lord of the Underworld, allow the spirit of she who fought for the people to return to fight the evil which plagues the worlds." Jonathan's hand ran over the blade again and for a moment, a muscular woman in black leather armor stood next to the sword. Her long black hair cascaded down her shoulders and a crooked smile came to her lips. She nodded her head and then faded into a mist, which ran along the blade as the candlelight grew in intensity.

"Hephesteus, God of the Forge, restore to this that which was taken from it." And as Jonathan's hand passed over the blade again, the pearl seemed to slip from the necklace and meld into the sword's hilt. The light from the candles grew to an almost blinding intensity.

"In the name of Greyskull, I beseech the gods to look upon this with their blessings. By the Power of Greyskull I reforge that which was broken. For the Honor of Greyskull I restore she who is the chosen heroine of the people. For Eternia, Etheria, and Earth, I return the honor and power which transcends all time and space." And with a final wave of his hands, the lights flashed and when out. A white glow filled the darkened room emanating from the now restored sword, which began to float up from the table with a growing hum.

Jonathan looked at Adam and Dawn. "Adam, take the sword and place it in Adora's hands, lengthwise along her body with the point towards her feet.

Adam nodded, grasping his sister's sword and placing it along her body, almost like a medieval knight being buried. He then rested her hands upon the hilt.

"Now, Dawn, I need you to take Adora's hands in yours and say these words for her, for she cannot. 'For the Honor of Greyskull.'"

Dawn looked a bit frightened, but, with a deep breath, moved over next to Adora and gently put her hands atop the woman's. "For the Honor of Greyskull" she said. There was a shock of electricity, from which Dawn quickly pulled back from as Adora's eyes opened.

"For the Honor...of Greyskull?" she said, with a Carribbean accent to her voice.

Jonathan looked at Adora, "You are Kendra?"

Kendra nodded, "I am Kendra, the Vampire Slayer."

Jonathan smiled, "Yes. Well, um, you see Kendra, you..."

Dawn piped up, "You're dead Kendra. And you took over someone else's body."

Kendra looked at Dawn, "You...you're the sister of Buffy, The one who was made."

Dawn shivered at being reminded she wasn't like other girls." Yes...I'm Buffy's sister."

Jonathan interrupted, seeing Dawn's discomfort. "Well, anyhow, you need to leave that body and let Adora have it back so you can go on to Heaven."

Kendra looked at Jonathan, still holding the sword, "And how do I do that? I've been wandering the Ghost Roads for so long..."

Jonathan smiled meekly, "Well, you hold the sword above your head and say these words. 'For the Honor of Greyskull.' "

Kendra looked at Jonathan with a smirk on her face, "Right"

Adam spoke up finally, remembering how when his sister said those words for the first time, they freed her from the spell of domination which was upon her. "He's telling the truth. Please, trust him on this."

Kendra shrugged and raised the sword above her head, "For the Honor, of Greyskull" she said, and as she did, her voice changed. Gone was her accent, gone was her voice, replaced by that of Adora's, which seemed to take on a timber all it's own. Light corruscated down the blade, swirling around it and Adora's body as an image of Castle Greyskull appeared behind Adora. As the swirling light ran over Adora's body, her clothing and look changed. Her leotard became a short white skirt with golden chest protection on it, much like that of the ghostly woman from before. A golden tiara rested upon her head and she wore almost knee high gold boots. The image of Greykull slid to the side and was replaced by another castle, this one made of crystal and shining with a heavenly light. As Greyskull;'s image sideslipped, the ghost of Kendra left Adora's body and stood before the image of Greyskull. Adora, now She-Ra, grasped her sword, hilt and point, and spoke, "I am She-Ra!" and her voice echoed off the basement walls. She then turned to Kendra's ghost, a smile on her face. "With the blessings of Greyskull and Lighthope and all good people, be at rest, Kendra of the Islands." Kendra's ghost smiled and her head nodded as she faded from view along with the images of Greyskull and the Crystal Palace.

Adam looked at She-Ra, "Well, it's never happened like THAT before." Dawn and Jonathan merely stared at her, awe written on their faces.

There was a crash behind She-Ra as someone fell through the basement window and tumbled to the floor. The Princess of Power reached down and grabbed the man by the lapels of his black leather jacket. "Anyone ever tell you it's not nice to peer in through windows?"

Dawn looked dumbfounded at who She-Ra was holding, "Spike?" she said quizzically.

Spike looked over at Dawn, a smile on his face, "Hey there, little bit." he said, and then he passed out.

**Chapter Fifteen**

"Tell me again. After all the trouble I went to in order to separate that gem from that blasted sword, you're telling me it's been restored?!" The shrieks of Morganna the Misbegotten echoed off the walls of the stone chamber that currently housed her minions.

"I just know it has something to do with that blasted He-Man!" Skeletor sneered, lightly pounding his fist on the stone altar that rested at the end of the chamber. Morganna whipped her head around at the sound. Ice formed in her eyes, and the temperature of the room seemed to drop at least ten degrees.

"Skeletor," she simpered, "What did I tell you about touching my things?" She asked and lifted her right hand in frustration. As she did, Skeletor flew across the room and crashed into the wall behind him.

"Where did that come from?" he asked. "You've never been able to touch me before!"

Morganna simply smiled, her blue eyes shining with what in any other being would have been unshed tears, but in her eyes were a lethal weapon. "I guess it doesn't matter if the sword is restored. As long as it and the ruby are on the same dimensional plane, my powers are starting to return."

"And you're memory?" the raspy voice of the Shadoweaver echoed down the hall as she glided into the room.

Morganna grimaced. "Only flashes." She paused, a distant memory hovering in her mind and felt in her pocket. Her hands touched something cold, metallic and hard. "Why did I think I forgot my keys?" she muttered under her breath.

"No big!" she tossed gaily. "Where are these new recruits you've been bragging about?" She demanded, dropping into her throne, which stood in front of the altar.

"I don't know what could be keeping them." The Shadoweaver rasped. "They should have been here hours ago."

"That's why you shouldn't attempt travel on the Ghost Roads unless you've been touched by the supernatural." A strange voice with a heavy English accent spoke from the doorway. "Those breaches can be such nasty things. You never know, if you stray too far from the road, which level of Hell you'll find yourself in."

Without a word, Morganna whirled around to face the man. Rays of ice shot from her eyes, encasing the man from the waist down.

"Now, don't get me wrong buddy, you're kind of cute and all, but just what do you think you're doing trespassing on my turf?" She demanded.

"I come in peace." The man claimed holding his arms up in the air in a mock gesture of surrender. "For the most part that is. Allow me to introduce myself. I am Ethan Rayne, Sorcerer extrordinare."

Morganna smirked. "I know well who you are, mortal. But what in this pitiful world could ever make you think that a god like me would have any interest in those foolish Illuminati?

Ethan's smirk matched her own. "Pissant time passers, they are. Something to keep me entertained until the real fun begins. Unfortunately for you, though, until someone activates your crown, you will not come into your full powers, still trapped in the body of a woman who could not even defeat the plans of one aging druid and his young pupil."

Morganna's face went white. "What do you know of Merlin? Does he still live?"

Ethan laughed hollowly. "My word, I think this is the first time I've ever seen a god tremble."

With a wave of her hand, the ice rose from Ethan's waist to his shoulders. "I could freeze you now and feel no regret for it tomorrow." She simpered.

"Yes, but if you do you will never know the fate of Merlin and his student. You will never know how to retrieve your crown from under the very nose of the Slayer and her friends. Oh, and did I mention that the recruits you've summoned to help in your efforts against the Slayer and her band will never be released from here." With a cock of his eyebrows, a purple bubble floated into the room. It glowed with an eerie bluish light. Peering inside, Skeletor could barely see the outlines of his would be allies, Katra and Beastman, frozen in time.

"Oh, a time bubble." He laughed dryly. "I could shatter this thing in an instant." Skeletor claimed, pointing his staff at the bubble and preparing to fire.

"I wouldn't do that if I were you." Ethan said.

"Why not?" Skeletor sneered.

"How do you know I haven't tinkered with the spell? I've been known to do that from time to time."

"You wouldn't dare to tamper with ancient magics." The Shadoweaver hissed. Ethan leveled his steely gaze on her glowing eye slits.

"Wouldn't I?" he laughed. "My dear lady, I am the man who sold cursed Halloween costumes simply for sport. I branded the Slayer with the mark of a demon so he would take her life instead of mine. I sold the entire town candy that resorted them to the ripe old age of sixteen. I'm also the man who manipulated the aforementioned Illuminati into killing one of their own, an archeologist by the name of Croft; I believe his daughter has recently allied herself with the Slayer, a most potent combination I might add. And yes, I hold this information solely through the use of magic, and you still think I wouldn't tamper with dark magics?"

Morganna stared at him inquisitively. "I like your style." She said. Her eyes flashed fire and the ice melted, freeing the man and leaving him perfectly dry. "Okay, boy-toy. You're in, for the time being. But if you screw up, it's the ice-house for you. Got it?"

Ethan smiled, holding out his had to Morganna, who took it in hers, "I think I can live under those conditions."

Morganna smiled sexily, her voice dropping to a seductive level, "Good, but one false mood, and your brain food"

Skeletor looked over at Shadoweaver and spoke so only the Horde Sorceress could hear, "Things are moving faster than we anticipated. She's remembering more and more of her true nature, now she remembers her ability to absorb mental energy. If we don't achieve our goals soon, we'll have a full-fledged goddess on our hands, rather than some over ambitious human sorceress."

Shadoweaver hissed, "I agree Skeletor. Perhaps the arrival of this sorcerer will allow us to distract her from remembering and focus her attention on retrieving the crown and eliminating our enemies."

Skeletor smirked, "Yes. It would be nice to finally be rid of that pesky He-Man."  
and with that he threw back his head and cackled with mirth.

Morganna looked past Ethan Rayne to look at Skeletor, "What's so funny bone head?"

"Nothing. Merely contemplating the destruction of our enemies, my lady."

"Good. Now, Ethan here is going to tell us all about how we can get the crown from that pesky Buffy and her friends."

**Chapter Sixteen**

Sunlight streamed through the window and rested upon Lara Croft's sleeping form. Xander Harris admired the way the white sheets enfolded her nubile form and he smiled goofily as he ran over the events of the previous evening. After all this time, he'd finally found a normal woman. Xander shrugged, "Well, normal compared to the last few women I've hooked up with, and I doubt I'll get eaten by her or catch some funky syphilis." He whispered. Xander gazed upon Lara for a few minutes more, then headed into the kitchen to fix breakfast.

Lara smiled as she noticed Xander leave. He certainly was an intriguing character. Lara sat up, the sheet slipping from her naked body as she moved to pick her discarded clothes from the floor. Slipping into them, Lara reflected on the events that brought her to Sunnydale. Giles had certainly found some very interesting associates. Bringing the Crown here had definitely been the right move.

Lara stood and looked at herself in the mirror as she fixed her hair into its traditional braid. Lara hummed to herself and smiled, then jumped in surprise as her cell phone went off.

Lara pulled it from her waist, "Croft here."

"Lara, glad you're awake." Giles voice came over the phone

"Rupert, what is it?"

"Well, some things developed here after you and Xander departed last night."

"Everyone alright?"

"They're fine Lara. However, I could use a ride, and some help. If you don't mind, could you bring Xander to Buffy's and pick me up as well? We need to deliver something to the High School."

"Of course. Will an hour do?"

"It should. And Lara? Say nothing of this to Buffy."

"OK Rupert, though, I don't like keeping secrets from her."

"It's for her own good Lara. See you in an hour."

"Bye"

Lara closed her phone and placed it back on her hip. She left the bedroom and made her way towards the kitchen.

"Something cooking?" Xander asked as he looked up from the large skillet he had placed on the stove.

"You mean besides breakfast?" She replied, a smile playing around the corners of her lips. Xander laughed jovially at her comment.

"Yeah, that's it. Are eggs okay? I didn't know what you liked to eat, and my last live in girlfriend's tastes in food tended to run towards the moldy cheese sort."

"Eggs are fine." Lara replied, choosing to overlook the comment about his latest love interest. She placed her palm lightly over his and looked deeply into his brown eyes. "Thank you for breakfast, but can I take a raincheck? Apparently Rupert has some things he needs at the High School and is without a mode of transportation."

"Sure thing." Xander replied with a slight raise of his eyebrows. "But I thought that the work on the school wasn't supposed to be finished till September? Are my guys that ahead of schedule?"

Lara fumbled for an excuse. "He could have said drop off for all I know. I wasn't exactly up and at em when he called. After all, we did have a rather exhausting evening." She smiled at him playfully and leaned in to plant a kiss on his astonished cheek. "See you back at Buffy's later today."

"Sure. I'll bring the eggs!" he called after her as the front door slammed. Smiling softly to himself, Xander contorted his body till his right arm was resting just below the back of his left shoulder. "Exhausting? I think we deserve a pat on the back for that one!"

Lara glanced strangely at the odd shaped, heavy bundle of blankets she and Oz had helped Giles haul out of Buffy's basement and into the back of her Humvee. "Should I even ask?"

Oz looked at her carefully. "My experience? Nah." An impish grin slid across his face as she leaned over and unlocked the passenger side door of the car. Giles climbed silently in beside her.

"So, uh, why are we putting Spike in the school basement?" Jonathan asked from his position on the floor of the car as Lara pulled into traffic.

"He needs to be kept away from Buffy." Giles said with a slight nod of his head. Lara looked strangely at the reflection of the small boy on the floor of her car. "Mind my asking why you've become friends with my carpet?"

Jonathan tossed her a half smile in the rearview mirror. "I'm on the lamb. I can't go back to the bighouse. That place changes a man, and not for the better." He grimaced, thinking of Andrew and how he had abandoned him down in Mexico. "As soon as I'm finished here, I really should get him to consider turning ourselves in." He thought to himself.

Oz placed a comforting hand on Jonathan's shoulder. "It's okay man. You were in there for what, two months?"

Jonathan blushed as Lara made a sharp left and swore under her breath. "Bloody pedestrians" she thought to herself as another person ran out into the middle of the road.

"Actually, it was more like two hours before Anya phased us out, but it still was life changing." Jonathan said softly. He looked down at his hands and was ashamed at the havoc he and his friends had wreaked. Well, it wasn't really havoc, it was more like major annoyance; at least major annoyance for your average Sunnydale resident.

"Yes, well, I'm afraid we may need assistance keeping Spike, uh, quiet during the last phase of the transportation." Giles said as he climbed out of the car and into the school parking lot.

"Want me to smack him around if he gets too loud? "Jonathan inquired.

"Actually, I was going to ask Lara to do that, but if you insist..." Giles' voice trailed off. Jonathan looked hopefully at the dark haired beauty. "Go ahead. Yell if you need me." She replied, knowing fully that should the vampire come to during his final trip, Jonathan would be calling for reinforcements at the first available opportunity.

Jonathan, however, was in heaven. His face lit up like a Christmas tree as he reached into his pocket and removed a small red velvet bag. He cupped his hand under the opening and let the contents pour out. To Lara's eyes, it resembled ordinary sand.

"Benedicta nominee pacem." Jonathan chanted softly as he sprinkled the sand over Spike's unconscious form. The body in the blankets seemed to go slack.

"What's with the fancy sand?" Lara asked as she grabbed what she hoped was a leg and started dragging the unconscious vampire toward the back stairs of the school.

"I got it from the Sandman."

"The what?" Lara asked skeptically.

"Yeah, you now." Jonathan said as he and Oz hoisted Spike's upper torso off the ground. "The guy with the bag of magic sand that goes around sprinkling it in your eyes and making you sleep."

"He exists?"

"Sure. He takes up residence in Mexico. But the sand doesn't exactly make you sleep."

Lara looked warily over her shoulder. "Really?"

"Well, it sort of induces a catatonic coma, but only for two weeks or so. Then the effects wear off..."Jonathan's voice trailed off when he realized that no one was paying any attention at this point to what he was saying. Instead, he concentrated on the inside of the new High School. It looked surprisingly the way he remembered it. At least the basement did.

"She was going to bring me here, you know. When it opened up this summer. Show me where the whole Scooby Gang began." A soft, feminine voice whispered in his ear. Jonathan looked to his right. Standing next to him was an extremely beautiful girl, but not in the conventional way. She was tall and curvy, with straight long dusky blond hair and large, green, sleepy looking eyes. Her smile was sweet and soft, and very intuitive. Jonathan knew her at once, and hardly believed what he saw.

"Don't say a word, Jonathan." The girl spoke. "I know it wasn't you who shot me. Willow knows it too. She has forgiven you. She can't forgive herself. Just like you." She smiled. Jonathan continued to look at her as he walked.

"She used to tell me about you. Willow always considered you a friend of hers in High School. She even said to me once, 'Tara, it's a shame Jonathan left UC Sunnydale after that superstar spell. You would have really liked him.' I always agreed with her, but you know Willow. She was always the smart one. The brainy type." Tara's eyes lit up playfully. "In fact, weren't you the one who started calling her Brainy Smurf?"

Jonathan chuckled at that memory.

"Look, the real reason I'm here is because I know what you're going through. The guilt. Well, I don't really know because I never participated in a crime ring or got someone shot, but I can understand. You want to make up for it. I can tell you how."

She leaned in close, so close Jonathan imagined he could feel her breath on his neck. "There's this seal. Here, in the basement. The construction crew doesn't know about it, it's buried way under the foundation. If you and Andrew uncover it, you can show it to Buffy and she can let you guys fill my spot in the gang. Sort of an instant friends-amends type of deal."

Jonathan's eyes lit up at the prospect as he and the others gently laid Spike on the cold concrete. They were all engrossed in some conversation involving Oz's new found ability to control the wolf. No one even mentioned how Jonathan had introduced Oz to the shaman who had taught him how to keep cool, as well as given him the potions that allowed him not to wolf out totally around Willow.

"They'll all want to be around you. You'll be the hero, Jonathan. And you will have earned it on your own." Tara smiled. "All you have to do is this." She whispered in his ear the instructions. As she pulled away, she looked him in the eye and smiled. "Tell Willow I'll see her soon." She said as she stepped back

"Jonathan? Are you OK man?" Oz asked, and Jonathan whirled around, his back to Tara, to look at Oz.

"Yea...yea, I'm ok. Just thinking about things."

"Cool. Let's go then, Giles and Lara are already leaving."

Jonathan looked back and nodded at Tara, who smiled again, and then followed Oz back out of the High School Basement.

"Very good, "The first said, the image of Tara shifting to that of Warren once Jonathan had passed out of sight, "The seeds of my victory have now been sown. They even brought me a nice new tool to use." The First leaned down, now appearing as Buffy, her hands motioning as if petting Spike's hair. "Of course, had that been anyone else, they never would have believed I was Tara. I never could get the speech patterns of those fortunate souls in Heaven just right. No wonder Angel never bought the entire Jenny Calendar masquerade."

Lara looked at Giles as the two guys finally finished their High School reminiscing and climbed into the Hummer, "So, where to next?"

Giles held his glasses in his hand, wiping the sweat from his brow on his sleeve, "Where else? Back to Buffy's."

"I should have known." Lara smiled and pulled out of the parking lot.

"Uh, guys? I think we need to talk first." Jonathan piped up, again sitting on the floor.

"About?" Oz asked.

"Well, when I found Kendra...I mean Adora, on the side of the road, she had that crown. It's still in my bag in Buffy's basement. You might want to stop and get it first."

Lara slammed on the brakes, causing several cars behind her to narrowly miss her rear bumper. She stared at Jonathan in disbelief along with Giles and Oz, "Let me get this straight. YOU have the crown?"

Jonathan shrugged, "Well, yea. Why? Were you looking for it?"

Oz playfully smacked Jonathan in the back of the head, "Well duh. Nice job Jono"

Jonathan beamed, liking this and thinking to himself, "I guess Tara was right". Lara pulled back into traffic, speeding their way back to Buffy's. "I think I like this hero stuff," Jonathan said with a smile.

Lara looked over quickly at Giles, "You know, Adam and Adora are still in the basement. Why don't I give Dawn a call and have her have one of them grab the bag."

"Good idea Lara" Giles answered. "Have Dawn tell both of them to meet us outside. Actually, scratch that. Have them get the bag and have Dawn gather the gang. Then we'll see what secrets this crown has to reveal to us."

Lara smiled, "Call Buffy" she said, and her cell phone obediently dialed the number.

"Summers residence" Dawn's cheerful voice chirped from the phone.

Lara began to pass on Giles' plan to Dawn, who gleefully accepted her duty as messenger.

Oz piped up as Lara's call ended, "Not to be a party pooper, but, how you gonna do that? Will's still a recovering Magic Addict."

Giles looked directly at Oz, and then Jonathan, "Well, I DID teach Willow all she originally knew. And, we also have a rather powerful warlock in our midst."

Jonathan blushed under the attention. "You want MY help?"

"Looks that way, "Lara said as she parked in Buffy's driveway.

**Chapter Seventeen**

"So, what have we found out about this crown thingy?" Buffy asked as she plopped down into an overstuffed chair that Lara had provided to replace the one broken in the fight with Kendra. The Slayer smiled as she looked at her new friend. "Ooh, comfy." She remarked with a contented sigh.

"Yes, well, if we can redirect our attention from the new comfy chair and back to the task at hand—"

"Bring in the comfy chair!!" Xander said with one finger raised in the air. The remark was met with total silence. "What, none of you English chaps watch Monty Python?"

Giles cleared his throat loudly. "As I was saying, back on the task at hand. The crown predates most written history. Legend states that it was fashioned by Merlin for a love interest who harbored dangerous magical abilities."

"Didn't Merlin have a thing with Arthur's half sister?" Dawn piped up.   
"We watched Excalibur in English last year after we read Morte de Arthur. They were pretty obvious about it there."

"Well, anything's possible, according to that movie. Even conceiving a child in full plate mail armor." Xander sneered.

"XANDER!" Buffy, Willow and Lara chorused with exasperated looks in his direction.

"Gotcha, shutting up now. " Xander said with a sigh.

"While that movie took several, ah, liberties with the story, Dawn does bring up a valid point in the fact that Arthur's half sister was named Morganna and was trained in the black arts. The romance with Merlin is believed to be mostly fictional Hollywood hype, though it would explain how Morganna would have been able to steal both the stone and the pearl from a wizard of Merlin's power." Giles finished.

Adora and Adam both looked at Giles, "Stone and Pearl?" Adora asked.

"Yes, the Ruby of Eternity and the Pearl of Earthly Magic", Giles explained. Adora's jaw dropped.

"In our legends, on Eternia, there is a story about a great wizard named Gandalf who fashioned a crown for a woman of incredible magical abilities. He was in love with her, however, her magic was directly linked to a mystical sight where they first consummated their relationship. He fashioned the crown to enable her to leave the place without losing any of her magic. However, the crown was stolen before she ever had the chance to wear it. To remind her of their love, the wizard built a castle around her on the spot of their love. It still stands there today. It is called Castle Greyskull."

"And if that is true, and your Merlin is our Gandalf, than that makes the Sorceress the woman he created the crown for."

"Isn't that the lady in the sword?" Dawn asked. Adora looked at her questioningly. "You've spoken to the Sorceress?"

"When she was in your pearl. She tried to contact me then..." Dawn continued as Adora took a mental note that the Sorceress had said she was going to contact the Key to the Dimensions and reached Dawn.

"All this background stuff is great, but what does the crown do? Exactly?" Buffy interrupted. "And please, use small words that us non English majors can understand!"

Lara grinned as she took the floor. "The crown is said to be a harness of energy. When brought into combat, it holds the ability to close a dimensional door."

"Where to?" Buffy asked.

"No one knows." Giles said with a frown. Buffy was not surprised. More often than not the Watcher's Council was the last to know when evil was about to go boom.

Lara shrugged, "My father sent me a letter and a map of where to find it. Before he died, that is. That's why I was looking for it. I figured if I found it, it couldn't hurt to know where that particular door leads before I locked it forever."

"This the same letter Giles looked at yesterday?" Willow asked curiously. Lara nodded. "Can we see the letter then?" Willow asked. "Of course." Lara replied as she fished the letter out of the back pocket of her leather pants. Willow carefully unfolded it and began to read.

"My dear Lara,

Dear child, I hope you never receive this letter. If you do, I then know you have been chosen. Enclosed you will find a map that leads to a powerful treasure that will aid you in your calling. The Crown of Morganna the Misbegotten must never fall into the wrong hands. In your hands, my child, the magicks it holds can be wielded for the proper cause. It is the only instrument that can close the door to the dimensions once all Hell breaks loose. In the hands of evil though... my precious Lara, the crown must never fall into the hands of evil. I don't even want to consider what havoc will be reaped across this world if it does. As always, my beautiful daughter, I wish this burden did not fall to you. But darling, if you do not find this, think to yourself who will. As always, you have my heart and my love.

Daddy"

Willow looked over at Lara as she finished reading the letter aloud, "Your father cared for you very much, didn't he?"

Lara smiled slightly, wiping her eyes, "Yes, he did". She looked gratefully at Xander, who placed a comforting hand gently on her shoulder. As the others focused their attention on Lara and the letter, Jonathan quietly entered the room, crown in hand. He smiled, oblivious to the emotional moment, "Here's the crown!" he jovially chirped, tossing it onto the table.

As the crown landed in the center of the table, Adora and Adam stared at it. "The Ruby of Eternia." Adam gasped.

"Eternity." Willow corrected.

"No, Eternia. Our home world." Adam said, gesturing towards his sister.

"Then this is all connected somehow." Xander asked as he sank down onto the couch. "It never ceases to amaze me."

"Why?" Buffy asked. "It's just your average day on the Hellmouth." She smirked. "Why shouldn't a big bad be brewing since Buffy's met a new gorgeous hunk of a----" She blushed, looking in Adam's direction" I mean, made new friends."

"I've got a simple answer to all of this." Dawn called, glad to be the smart one for a change. "Why don't we just contact the lady in the Sword?" She smiled. "I mean, if this crown thingy is really hers, don't you think she might want it back?"

"Sounds like a plan," Lara stated. She reached out to pick up the crown. As her bare skin came into contact with the crown for the first time, there was a flash of light. Lara was thrown back over the couch, her head hitting the windowsill with a loud CRACK. Xander immediately sprang to her side, gently picking her up and carrying her back to the couch.

At the same time, Adora and Adam leaped to their feet, a strange power compelling them to both raise their swords over their head. Simultaneously, they said their individual words of activation. Lightning flashed and light coruscated around the room as the magic of the two swords changed the twins into He-Man and She-Ra. The two undying heroes aimed their swords at Dawn, as they normally would at their animal companions, and light shot from the blades, striking Dawn in the chest. Where the light hit, a glowing green ball of energy gathered.

Buffy stared at her sister, instantly recognizing The Key; the magic that her sister contained, reforming at the point of contact. She leaped at Dawn, knocking her sister to safety. As Dawn was freed from the blast, the magical orb remained, now pulsing with a light all it's own. Two thuds resounded as both He-Man and She-Ra fell to the floor, unconscious. The front door flew open as Jonathan, panicking, ran from the house, the only thought in his mind to get back to Andrew.

The glowing orb pulsed and grew, taking on a human-like shape. A faded image grew inside that shape, of an attractive, young, blonde haired girl. Willow stared into the girls' eyes and recognition came to her face. "Not this time" she said, her eyes suddenly black, her hair, once red, now turning black from roots to tips. She reached into the glowing circle of magic, and shouted a command word. The blonde smiled as she laughed, and instead, slipped inside Willow's body. The light faded as Willow turned towards the window and screamed a primal scream of rage. Ice shot from her eyes, shattering the window. As the ice shot from her, so did the spirit she had inadvertently absorbed. The blonde, now almost solid, smiled again as Willow collapsed to the ground, exhausted, her hair once more a brilliant red. "Thanks for the pick me up, you little Witch" she snapped. Then with a toss of her curly locks, she vanished.

Morganna paced back and forth, impatience on her face. "How long until

Beastman and Katra have gotten back my crown?"

The whispery voice of Shadoweaver answered her, "Not much longer. Skeletor just contacted me magically to say they were nearing the home now, and that something was going on there. The warlock we saw earlier was seen fleeing the Slayer's home.

Morganna smiled, "Good, tell Skeletor..." suddenly her eyes went wide as a beam of light shot from the ceiling into her head. Morganna collapsed to the ground, and the Shadoweaver backed away a few steps, quickly contacting her ally."Skeletor. The time has come. Get the crown now and take it to the human, Rayne. It seems that Morganna has regained her abilities, and our time grows short."

Slowly, the woman who Shadoweaver called Morganna, rose to her feet. "That bastard." She exclaimed. "He killed me. He tried to kill me. And when I was trapped in that weakling Ben's form too." She smiled seductively, her eyes shining their true aqua color for the first time in centuries. "Well, no matter. They can believe that if you killed the man you killed the god all they want. Just makes for a better finale this time." She looked down at her clothing in disgust. "Yuck! Who dressed me in this?!" She tugged at the tweedy fabric of her eighteenth century dress. ""Hey, floater, why don't you conjure me up something in Lycra? Preferably in red."

Shadoweaver bowed at the waist, "It is good to see you restored to yourself, most powerful one."

Glory smiled. "Thanks Shadoweaver. Now, it is time for me to complete my revenge and then to go home. And once I have regained my Crown and Key, then you can tell big bad smoky machine boss Horde Prime that I'll give him more than what we originally agreed on."

Shadoweaver bowed again, keeping quiet. "First things first, though." Shadoweaver looked at her blankly. "The clothes?" She gestured impatiently. Shadoweaver circled her hands in the air and suddenly the long, proper dress transformed itself into a stretchy red minidress with three inch heels. "Perfect." She said with a toss of her head. Glory smiled again, "Spread the news all, Glory is back in Town!"

**Chapter Eighteen**

Skeletor observed the house through the windows, leering as he received Shadoweaver's message. "Finally...A chance to do something without the interference of that pesky He-Man or She-Ra." Beastman nodded his orange furred head, "Yes, Skeletor," he grunted.

Skeletor looked to his right, "You, Beastman, when I tell you, break down that door and dispatch the people inside. Katra, you will grab the girl, so we can be done with this charade and get down to our real business on this pitiful world."

Katra smiled, tossing her head so her long black hair fell luxuriously down her back, "Rrwar, yes, Skeletor. This should prove fun" her voice was soft and sultry and she almost purred as she spoke.

"Fun. Yes, this should prove to be a lot of fun." And then Skeletor threw back his head and cackled wickedly; he looked over at Beastman, "Now"

Beastman looked at Skeletor, confusion on his beastial face, "The door you lug brained imbecile!" Skeletor shouted.

"Oh, the door. Sorry Skeletor" Beastman mumbled.

"Quit the apologies and get the door down you moronic furball."

Beastman nodded and advanced on the door. He lumbered up the stairs, his paws slamming into the wood and shattering it completely.

At the crash, Buffy looked up from where she had just carefully placed the unconscious She-Ra on the couch. Xander, holding an ice pack to Lara's forehead also looked up. "Oh great, what are you? An escapee from the ASPCA?" Buffy quipped.

Beastman grumbled, "Guess again" and lunged at Buffy. The Slayer leaped to the side as Lara, still weak and on the floor, raised one of her pistols and fired at Beastman. Even groggy, the Tomb Raider's shot hit him, barely. Beastman roared in pain, then turned his head and slapped a mahogany end table across the room. Xander grabbed Lara and rolled away, but not in time. The table's corner clipped Lara in the head and knocked her unconscious again. At that moment, Dawn entered the room, "Buffy? I made your crush as comfortable as I could..." and then with a screech, she fell back through the kitchen door.

Beastman saw Dawn's entrance and lumbered towards the kitchen, Buffy leaped after him, aiming a kick to his back. "We're not done yet, furrball." She exclaimed.

Beastman turned around, Buffy's foot impacting with his face and sending him sprawling, right into Giles, who was rushing in from the kitchen after Dawn's screeching fall. The Watcher's head hit the floor and he too, was rendered unconscious. Beastman quickly regained his feet and faced off against Buffy.

"Well, this certainly is unexpected." Buffy thought to herself mid hitch-kick. Her foot connected solidly with the hairy jaw of the huge, orange, hulking mass of a thing she was fighting.

"Buffy!!!" Dawn screamed as the woman with the long dark hair grabbed her around the waist.

"No sweat, I can handle her." Xander commented as he charged, head first, towards the woman's midsection. She smiled and let out a dissatisfied Meow as she lowered the red cat-eyed mask to her face. A high pitched whine was heard as she bent at the waist. Suddenly, where the woman had stood there was a large black panther wearing a red mask. Katra swiped at Xander with one paw, sending him sprawling across the room. With the other, she swept Dawn up onto her back, a red saddle securing Dawn's waist to Katra's back. With a leap, Katra bounded off.

"NO!!" Buffy shouted as she turned towards the advancing feline. Beastman grabbed her by the hair and snarled, placing one hand on Buffy's throat. He held her at arms length, so she was unable to punch or kick. He began to squeeze, laughing at the distress he could see in her eyes.

Until he was knocked to the ground from the side. As Buffy was released from his crushing grip, she saw Oz, in half wolf form, pushing the felled Beastman to the side of the room. Xander grabbed him by the fur collar and held on tight. Beastman roared as he tried in vain to shake the young man off his back.

Buffy took off at full pace after the panther. She followed it out the door to her front lawn where she stopped short.

Standing on her lawn was a creature from a nightmare. The flesh had completely rotted away from his face, leaving only the yellowed bone behind. A sickly grin sat where his lips should be. His eye sockets, devoid of eyes, seemed to only hold malice.

"What's this? She-Ra's little sister?" he sneered in a voice that grated highly on Buffy's nerves.

"No, but you have mine." Buffy replied, her wit matching his.

"Pity she's so young. I never liked hurting children. But if that's what Glorificus wants, that's what she'll get."

The blood drained from Buffy's face at the mention of that name. "Glory is dead." She replied.

'That's what you thought. Don't you realize how much it takes to kill a god?" he asked.

"Enough talk, Bonehead. Give me my sister or I'll—"

"You'll what?" He asked as he stroked the cat behind its ears. "You can't stop Glorificus, you can't stop the Shadoweaver, and you certainly can't stop me! Horde Prime will conquer this world, and I, his loyal servant Skeletor, will rule it in his name!" Buffy lunged, ready to take this annoying pest down. Skeletor's smile grew as he aimed his skull topped staff in her direction. A beam of light shot from it and hit Buffy square in the chest. She froze mid-lunge. Her mind was fully functional, but she was unable to move her body. All she could do was watch as Skeletor walked inside, and shot Xander with the same beam. Oz leapt at him, fully wolfed now. Skeletor raised his right hand and Oz froze in mid air. He laughed as he walked calmly out of the house. Beastman picked Dawn up off of Katra's back as she removed her mask and transformed back into her svelte self. All Buffy could do was watch as Skeletor, Katra and Beastman calmly walked out of her house with her sister in their possession.

"Dawn..."Buffy thought, a split second before the roar was heard. Overhead, a giant bluish metal Ship, the front shaped like a leering skull, hovered. Three beams of light shot down and engulfed Skeletor and the others. In a flash they were gone.

Including Dawn.

"There is no discussion!" Buffy yelled, an hour later when everyone had recovered from their various injuries and spell effects. "Glory is back, and she has Dawn. We need to fight and we need to fight now."

"Just wait a second, Buffy. You're not thinking clearly." Xander spoke up. Buffy whirled around, her eyes flashing an icy blue as she took in her friend.

"Of all people, Xander, I never expected you to disagree with me on this one. Do you remember what happened the last time we came up against Glory and her minions?" Xander remained silent, his eyes cast downward. "I died Xander. Not really looking forward to that one again."

"That's not what I meant." Xander began.

"Then what did you mean? It didn't matter? If Buffy dies, hey, we'll just resurrect her again. Is that it?" Willow shot at him. "Well, I hate to break it to you, Xander, but those magicks won't work anymore. If they did, do you think Tara wouldn't be here right now!?" Willow's eyes filled with tears. "God, I can't even cover a pimple without getting dark roots and you want me to try—"

"ENOUGH!" Giles shouted, the Englishman showing his rarely lost temper. "The problem here isn't that Glory has Dawn. "

"I beg to differ, Rupert." Lara interjected as she entered the room. The adventuress was obviously already set for battle. Her hip hugging shorts had replaced the pants she wore earlier, her twin pistols were in their holsters on her thighs and she was wearing the black trench coat Whistler sent her. In her right hand, still sheathed, was the katana which came with the armored coat. "Dawn is quite powerful, and if this Glory person is as hard to defeat as everyone says, that can't be a good thing. Dawn told me a bit about your encounters with Glory before."

"Of course it isn't good." Giles began, rubbing his forehead on frustration. "I meant to add, that the crown is also missing. It is logical to assume that while we were busy fighting Dawn's strange abductors,--"

"Skeletor and Beastman," Adam interjected.

"And Katra. Must not forget her" Adora added.

Giles continued. "While we were fighting Skeletor, Beastman, and Katra, that someone else working for them took the crown. Someone we know quite well."

"What makes you say that?" Willow asked.

"This lovely little note I found on the kitchen table. It's from an old friend of mine. Ethan Rayne.

"Him again?" Xander groaned.

Lara looked over at Giles, "Rayne? As in the new head of the Illuminati? Well, head of it after I eliminated their previous leader."

"Who are the Illuminati?" Adora asked.

"The group who murdered my father. Power seeking practitioners of dark arts seeking to rule the world. Puppetmasters." Lara replied

"Sounds a lot like Skeletor's kind of people, "Adam added.

"Which means Glory and they should all get along quite well" Buffy quipped.

Xander held his head in his hands, "I think I'm getting a headache with all these big bads running around at once. Can't we just go back to the good old days of evil Faith, immortal Mayors that become giant snakes, and Angel's mood swings?"

"That is neither here nor there," Giles said, attempting to bring the conversation back full circle. "Chances are, both Ethan and Skeletor are working with Glory. And chances are that if they have Dawn, they have the crown."

"And if the Ruby of Eternia and the Key of the Dimensions come together..."Adam began.

"Then we're all in trouble, "Adora added

"And all Hell breaks lose." Oz finished up.

"One thing I neglected to mention before is that the power of the crown can only be activated when worn by a woman with the potential to be the next Slayer."

"So then we just make sure Buffy doesn't touch the crown," Xander said.

"No. Glory has Dawn. Dawn is not only The Key, or the Key to the Dimensions as our otherworldly friends here call her" he waved his hand indicating Adam and Adora. "Her name is on the Watcher's List. Someone has already been assigned to her should she be called."

"Great, so not only does Dawn open this evil portal to Hell and mutate parts of our world into that of other dimensions, but now she can also destroy another world without even being there?" Xander said sardonically.

Lara looked at Xander, "No. The crown only closes portals."

"Good news for you Buff. No need to swan dive into the evil Hell Portal this time." Xander quipped.

Buffy tossed a pillow at him, "Thanks so much. Can we keep on track here?"

"Captain Obvious here. If Glory died, why is she back?" Oz interjected.

"Oh no...I brought her back when I brought Buffy back, didn't I?" Willow said, all color draining from her face.

Lara placed a comforting hand on Willow's shoulder, "If that was true she would have attacked long ago. I think the blame for this falls on my shoulder. When Dawn and I were out on our tour, she told me a lot about herself, and all of you. Some of which I think shouldn't have been shared outside the family, "she smiled at that, "and some of it covered your...adventures, Buffy, and how you gave yourself to stop Glory. For some reason, Dawn's description of Glory intrigued me. And now, I know why. I don't know why it didn't occur to me when Dawn described her, perhaps it has something to do with the attacking ghost and skeletons that showed up soon after. Anyhow, I've met Glory before. Either that, or she's at least the twin of the woman I encountered in the cavern."

Xander looked over at Lara confused, "That means that Morgan Le Fay or Morganna the Misbegotten, take your pick, is also Glory?"

Adam stood up, sword in hand, "I think it's time we contacted the Sorceress on this one." Then he looked over at Adora, "Sis?"

Adora nodded and stood up, unsheathing her sword and crossing it with her brothers. The others stood back, watching.

"Sorceress, can you hear me?" Adam said, eyes closing.

"We need your help." Adora added.

The pearl in Adora's sword swirled with a rainbow light and a translucent figure appeared before everyone. The Sorceress smiled and bowed to those assembled. "Greetings, Buffy Summers, Slayer of the Vampires. Greetings, Rupert Giles, of the Watchers Councils. And greetings to you as well, Lady Lara Croft, Chosen of the Ancients, Protector of the Great Triangle, and she who found The Box that Should Never Be Opened." The three all seemed to blush under the formal address and respect the Sorceress gave them

"Hey, what about us" Xander whispered to Willow. In response, Willow's elbow made contact with his kidneys.

"I have not forgotten the rest of you either, Xander Harris. You, perhaps, have the greatest gifts of all. The courage and loyalty of the Common Man. And, there is great power in each and every one of you. The young man to your left," and the Sorceress' shimmering image nodded at Oz, "carries the legacy of the Van Helsing clan. You, Willow Rosenberg, bear power that rivals that of my old, dear friend, Gandalf."

Giles looked at the Sorceress' image, "Gandalf? I assume you do not mean the character in 'Lord of the Rings'"

The Sorceress chuckled, "You are correct, though he was in fact based on my beloved. The wizard I called Gandalf is better known on Earth as Merlin."

"So then, the whole King Arthur thing is true." Buffy said.

"In part, yes. And they all play a part in the events which have brought all of you to this time and place. As a young girl of sixteen, I was trained in the magical arts by Merlin. He found me to be quite gifted in spells, protection spells particularly. Over time, we fell in love. And like all tragic love stories, there was a downfall. My powers became bound to the place where our love was born. I became a virtual prisoner, unable to even float a pencil beyond the grounds of our 149onsummation. Merlin created the crown to allow me to move from dimension to dimension and still possess my full powers. The Pearl of Earthly magic is endowed with several different properties, such as healing, increased strength, and the ability to speak with animals. These were my strongest powers, and Merlin was able to transfer them to the pearl, which originally sat mounted directly under the Ruby of Eternia, in the crown. The ruby, at first, was an empty spell crystal, designed for me to add more of my powers to it as they grew.

The crown, however was taken by a rival of mine, a rival for both Merlin's affections and power; Morganna the Misbegotten. She attempted to use the crown to open a portal to a Hell dimension, where she had ruled for quite some time as a God, directly into the Hall of the Round Table in Camelot. My beloved Merlin and I intercepted her diabolical plan in time to banish an aspect of her into the crown, directly into the nearest empty spell crystal, the Ruby of Eternia. The rest of her, the aspect if you will, was separated into two beings. One was banished to the cavern where the crown was buried, and the other was banished into a prison by the Knights of Athenia. Those you call the Knights of the Round Table. They banished her into the body of a newborn baby boy.

The Pearl Of Earthly Magic was removed from the crown and set into an artifact of Earth. One of two twin blades taken from the tombs of two of the great heroes of the ancient world. Your sword, Adora. That is why as She-Ra you possess so many other powers that Adam, as He-Man does not. Only when the two stones were reunited could the aspect of Glorificus regain some of her powers. That is why they were sent to different worlds.

The spell was foolproof, or so we thought. We were unaware at the time that Glorificus had also gotten her hands on the Key to the Dimensions, which Merlin also had created for me to travel. I was forced to send the key to a group of monks who remembered the glory that I and Merlin helped Arthur Pendragon create. They kept it safe for many centuries. I had no way of forseeing that they would ever harness it into human form, for much to my dismay, I was forced to close the portal to Earth when the banishment had been completed. I never saw my beloved Merlin again. All that remains of him now is the castle he built for me to harness my magic."

Adam looked at The Sorceress, "You mean Castle Greyskull?"

The Sorceress nodded, "Yes. And that is why I can not leave Greyskull for long. Because my magic, my very essence, is linked to it."

Buffy looked at the Sorceress, "This is all very nice and all, but what does this have to do with my sister?"

The Sorceress smiled. "As you well know, Glorificus desires to return to her home dimension. To do so, she needs a key. The Key to the Dimensions. Your sister, Dawn. However, she also needs the power bound into the crown, to reclaim her godly throne upon her return. The crown holds most of the power she had as a goddess. Without it, she is no stronger than she was the last time you confronted her."

Xander cleared his throat, "Uhm, excuse me, but, the last time Buffy fought Glory, she died."  
Lara smiled, "Yes, but the last time, she only had you guys, not Hercules and the blonde Xena there, and especially not me. And, you didn't have this either." And with that, Lara handed the sword she had been holding to Xander. "A good friend of mine sent me this. Supposedly, it's an ancient blade, once carried by a great Scots warrior. What a Scotsman was doing with a Japanese blade, I don't know. However, my friend has added a few things to it. It's just made for slicing vampires in a hurry."

Xander grinned, "A gift, for me? I didn't know you cared."

Lara smiled playfully, "After last night you still doubt me?"

Xander blushed and Willow giggled.

Giles, pushing his glasses up his nose, interjected, "Well, if we are done with the love fets now. Perhaps we can speak with our otherworldly friend here and find out what help she can lend to the fight"

The sorceress bowed her head, "As I said, my magic is tied to Castle Greyskull. However, I can find where Glorificus is located and guide you to her through Adora's sword. Other than that, I can do little else besides wish you luck."

Adam looked at his sister, "Guess it's time for us to do our thing." Adora nodded and the two raised their blades high in the air and chanted their respective activation phrases. The room glowed with the conjured magic and the two soon changed into He-Man and She-Ra.

Buffy looked at The Sorceress. "Now that that is over with. Let's get down to business. Like Lara said, Glory's got more help than last time."

"He-Man smiled, "Don't worry about Skeletor, I've dealt with him before."

"And Katra and Beastman are mine." She-Ra added.

"Great. Fine. Thanks. What about the rest though?"

"Don't worry Buffy. I'll be right next to you. "Lara stated, resting a hand on her new friend's shoulder

"Thanks Lara, that means a lot."

Giles looked at the Sorceress again, "Can you tell us anything about where Glory is?"

"Not without some help. Willow Rosenberg?"

Willow looked over, dreading what was to come. Oz stood beside her, lending her his strength. "Yes?" she said, a gulp quickly following it

"I am going to need your help in this."  
"I...don't know if I can. Every time I use the magic, I go all evilly like"

"Do not fear your magic child. It is not something to be feared. It will overwhelm you only if you allow it to. Harness it's power, and you will triumph. I will help you even as you help me"

Buffy looked at her friend. Willow looked back and nodded. "Dawnny needs our help and the only way we can help is with me helping you" she nodded at the Sorceress, "So, let's do this"

**Chapter Nineteen**

"Are you sure it's in here?" Xander asked Giles as he blew a large tuft of dust off of an ancient, leather bound volume on the shelf in his apartment.

"Positive." Giles said. "Henry left the diary to my father, who upon learning of my calling as a watcher, thought it might be useful in my quests."

"And we need this old diary because..." Xander's voice trailed off. Giles looked up at him in exhasperation.

'While it is true that many have searched for the Holy Grail and found nothing, the very proof of Merlin's existence is proof of the grail. When Henry and his son found the Temple of the Crescent Moon, the Grail was lost. Where is the most famous place for lost mystical artifacts to turn up?

"The Hellmouth!" Xander snapped his fingers, catching on.

"And if you were a crazy Hellgod with a flair for the dramatic intent on going home..."

"Then I would re-create the holiness of it's last resting place just to mock my brother Arthur, his incompetence, and the fact that he triumphed over me once before when I set the stage for my final victory." Lara finished as she entered the room. She pulled a tiny old leather journal out of the pocket of her trench coat. "Is this what you're looking for?"

Giles grimaced. "Where did you get that?" He questioned. Lara smiled sheepishly as she avoided making eye contact with her old tutor. "A girl has got to read from time to time." She tossed it on the table. "Now, if we aren't going to the canyon, what do we need the Grail Diary for?"

Giles sat down and perched his glasses on the edge of his nose. "There are three trials one must face to open the path to the sanctuary. I am assuming that this is where Glory plans to hold her ceremony. Henry had them listed in here, only they were riddles that needed to be figured out as they were done..." he thumbed anxiously through the pages. "Ah yes here they are:

The Breath of God- only the penitent man will pass.

The Word of God- only in the footsteps of God will he proceed.

The Path of God- Only in a leap form the lion's head will he prove his worth"

Lara leaned in, reading over his shoulder. "It even explains here how Dr. Jones completed each task." She said as she took in the detailed descriptions.

"Just remember that Glory is above all things vain. I wouldn't put it past her to attempt to copy the original design, with slight modifications." Giles admonished warningly. Lara smiled as she re-pocketed the diary. "Let's go, the others are waiting."

Meanwhile, back at the Summer's home, the Slayer was fighting a losing battle.

With herself.

Buffy was trying her best to focus her energy and find her zen, but with her sister being held prisoner by a crazed, full powered Hellgod, who wanted them both dead, that wasn't the easiest thing in the world.

As she sat cross legged on her bedroom rug, her arms straight out, Buffy attempted for the fourth time to focus her thoughts on the task at hand.

Outside her window, a dog barked.

Buffy jumped three feet in the air, knocking over the candles she had placed in a circle around herself for a clamiong effect.

'SHIT!" She said, and stopped herself. Her nerves were frazzled, as proven by her use of profanity.

'It's hard when they go after your loved ones, isn't it?" A soft, deep female voice said. Buffy looked up, expecting to find Lara in her door, ad was surprised when she found herself face to face with She-Ra.

"They always pull the friends and family card on me." She smiled. "You think I'd be used to it by now, right?"

She-Ra crossed the room, and gently placed a hand on Buffy's shoulder. "You never really get used to it. Not when you're the defender of the world." She smiled cynically for a moment. "I can't count the number of times Skeletor or Hordac have kidnapped me, my brother, or Orco in an attempt to get the other one to submit to their will. And try as much as you like, you can't win them all." She paused. "I know that when I look up at Etheria's three moons every night I wonder if my parents and brother are safe. More than anything I wish to be there with them, but my calling is elsewhere."

"I'm sorry, I had no idea—" Buffy began. She-Ra cut her off.

"I'm not implying that you should have. I'm only saying that there is someone else out there who understands what it's like to have the weight of the world on your shoulders, and to worry about how you're friends and family are faring at the same time. I also know what it's like to want a normal life and family more than anything in the world, and know that as long as you live you'll never have that particular luxury."

Buffy looked at her, respect shining out of her blue eyes. "So how do you deal with it?"

She-Ra smiled. "The only way that I can. One catastrophe at a time, with a healthy dose of bad puns in my back pocket."

Can you feel Hell Spawning tonight...

Glory smiled as Shadoweaver finished her incantations and the building reformed into something more her liking. "Yes. That's much better. Much more my style than that work in progress they call a High School. And so much quicker than using mind wiped dupes."

Skeletor sneered, "It doesn't look menacing enough for my taste and seems a bit overdramatic."

Glory smiled as she looked at Skeletor, "This from a guy who lives in a mountain with a giant stone snake coiled around it. Like you're Cobra commander or something."

Skeletor looked shocked, "That moronic fool? He's already contacted me wanting to join forces."

Shadoweaver hissed, "Shall we enter the new Temple?"

Glory nodded, "Yeah, whatever. You, Catwoman, and you, Orange Orangutang Man, bring my Crown and Key. And be careful with the Key!" A slow sinister smile spread across Glory's demonically beautiful features. "After all, bruising is such a waste of blood, isn't it, Dawnny?"" As she spoke, Glory walked up the stone steps past the two statues that stood watch. Her grin grew. "Oh, won't they be surprised when they get here. And you know they will. The Slayer and her Scoobies just couldn't pass up a chance to try and stop me again. But this time, I'll be ready for them." As she spoke she ran her fingers over the two statues of the knights, her fingers glowing, a small ray of yellowish light running from the tip into the stone. "And so appropriate too. My brother and his best friend forced to stand watch over my sanctum."

Skeletor looked at the two statues, "And they should give that pesky He-Man and She-Ra something to think about as well" and then, as Katra passed by bearing the crown, he threw his head back and laughed maniacally.

"Yes. And I shall finally be able to properly thank Lady Croft for aiding me in my ascension to the head of the Illuminati." Ethan Rayne said, emerging from the shadows of some nearby trees. "And, perhaps, settle accounts with Ripper as well." He smiled, humming a little ditty, and walked up the steps behind Beastman, who held the squirming Dawn in his arms. "One moment Beastman." He said, tapping the orange furred giant on the shoulder.

"Huh?" Beastman grunted as he turned around.

Ethan reached into Dawn's left pocket and withdrew a small silver object. "There. Now you can go inside with Glorificus' key." And then he turned around looking back over the parking lot. "Can't have little Dawn here calling for help before the party is ready" and he smiled again and dropped the cell phone to the ground and stomped on it, smashing the delicate plastic phone beneath the heel of his shoe.

**Chapter Twenty**

"Woah, this is going to set my teamsters back months!" Xander moaned as he stared in awe at the Parthenon like structure that now stood where the new High School had been ready to open in a few short months.

"Has there ever been a time when our exploits here haven't lead to any real reconstruction?" Buffy asked dryly as they approached the entrance cautiously.

"I'm thinking no." Oz n added with a sidelong glance at Willow.

"So, are we breaking out the Big Guns?" Xander asked.

"Not quite yet." Buffy said. She turned to face her best friend. "Will, how do you feel about some Derringer action?"

Willow took a deep breath, her hands shaking. Oz placed a hand on her shoulder and looked her in the eye. "You can do this. You're the strongest person I know."

"Except for Buffy, and She-Ra, and He-Man, and...." Xander tossed in. Giles glared in his general direction, and he fell silent.

"Let her concentrate." She-Ra admonished him. Oz gently took her hand in his as Willow closed her eyes and began chanting:

"Goddess Hecate, I beg of thee,

Help me to see what you can see.

Reveal the evil doer's spies,

Reveal secret places where magic lies!"

A blinding blue flash emanated from Willow's hands and traced a path outlining the entire palace.

"Well, duh, it's obvious that place is magical." Xander began. Giles glared again as the blue glow began to dissipate throughout the grounds till it lay highly concentrated on the two statues that guarded the entrance to the building, as well as the path that lay beyond it.

"Guess we're back in the saddle again." Oz whispered as the group trudged along the path to the entrance. As they approached, everyone took up what he had come to think of as their battle stations; Lara pulled her guns, Buffy her rocket launcher, Xander his katana, He-Man and She-Ra their swords, and Giles and Willow their spell books. He himself looked up at the sliver of a crescent moon. Concentrating all his efforts on that image, the moon began to grow larger and larger. As it did, the hair on the back of Oz's neck stood on end. The larger the moon got, the more he could feel his hair begin to grow. Soon, the moon was full.

A werewolf stood where Oz had been. Fully in control of his mind and body, Oz took Willow's hand again in his large furry paw even as Buffy and Lara advanced slowly up the marble steps of the Greco-roman temple.

Soon the sound of stone grinding on stone could be heard as the two knights standing to either side of the doorway began to move. As they moved, their images changed, stone becoming flesh. Moonlight now shined off the deadly silver blades and chain mail armor the two muscular men bore, and off the golden crown that rested upon the head on the man on the right.

Lara looked and her jaw dropped as she saw the tabard that draped over the chest of the knight with the crown. "No...it can't be." But it was. Only one man in history ever wore the symbol of a leaping gold dragon upon his chest. Before Lara and Buffy, blades drawn to bar their way, stood Arthur Pendragon, King of all Briton, and his friend, Lancelot, Du Lac, Knight of the Round Table.

"This is bad, isn't it?" Buffy asked.

"Very much so" Lara replied.

The two knights looked at the women and their companions, and in one voice, devoid of all feeling, spoke. "The way is shut. It was made by she who rules us all. The way is shut." And then the two knights advanced on the women.

Lara and Buffy immediately leaped backwards as He-Man and She-Ra rushed into the fray. As the two leapt up the steps, they swung their blades to meet those of Lancelot and Arthur. The blades clashed together with a loud CLANG as the knights and the two eternal champions dueled.

Willow looked at Giles, "I think dispelling this might be a good idea." Giles nodded and the two began flipping through their respective grimoire's. Behind them, branches rustled and suddenly, several young men entered the parking lot and leapt at the two spellcasters, fangs barred.

Xander intercepted the leaping bodies, katana swinging. As the blade slashed across the chest of the nearest of the four, the vampire squealed in paing as he collapsed into dust. "Nice blade," Xander shouted, swinging at another vampire. The other two vampires toppled to the ground as a massive wolf slammed into their back. Oz howled and then tore the neck form the first vampire he had tackled.

Buffy turned at the sound of the howl, "We've got company Lara." Lara spun around to see the shambling horde of zombies that was shuffling it's way across the parking lot now, several more vampire's leading the way.

Lara sighed, "What is it with this town? First it's 'Bram Stoker's Dracula' and now 'Night of the Living Dead'?" Even as she spoke though, her pistols snapped up and she began blazing away at the nearest moaning corpse.

Buffy aimed the rocket launcher at the center of the mass, "That way takes too long." She said with a smile and opened fire. The rocket sped along on a trail of white smoke and slammed into the ground in the center of the zombies with a loud explosion. Corpses and pieces of zombie flew everywhere. Buffy dropped the now useless weapon and leapt down the steps.

"Well, these two are certainly more a challenge than your standard Horde Trooper," She-Ra said as she rolled along the marble, doging a swing from Lancelot's sword.

"And certainly better skilled than Skeletor's usual lackies" He-Man said, slipping under Arthur's stroke.

"Still, they seem kind of stone like in their thought process, don't you think brother?" She-Ra swung her blade at Lancelot, who barely dodged it, the blade slicing through the marble column next to him.

"Yes. Regular stone faced enemies you might say Sis" He-Man took a different tactic. Now inside Arthur's reach, he grabbed the legendary king and lifted him over his head. With a grunt of effort, He-Man hurled Arthur across the parking lot and into a parked cement truck. The King's head hit the side of the truck and then his whole body exploded into a cloud of stone, his sword clattering to the ground.

"Good idea you have there Brother" She-Ra remarked. "Sword, to lasso" she held her blade as light flashed and it transformed into a coil of white rope. Swinging it over her head and taking several steps down and away from Lancelot, she let it fly. The loop on the end flew straight and true and right over Lancelot's head and shoulder. She-Ra gave the rope a tug and Lancelot flew from the steps into the same cement truck Arthur had and exploded on impact into a cloud of stone. She-Ra retrieved the rope and transformed it back to a sword, then turned to see how the other were faring.

Oz howled again, as he ripped the throat from another vampire. Xander was heard humming 'Duel of the Fates' as he sliced his way through the Vampires. Lara stood back to back with a pillar, guns blazing, zombies dropping like flies, while Buffy leapt and dodged, stakes dusting vampire's left and right. Soon, the battle was over, with only the companions left standing.

Xander grinned form ear to ear, "Well, looks like that's over with"

"Only the initial soiree. We still have to get inside." Buffy said.

Lara, however, was studying the blade left behind when Artur shattered. She held it up and glaced at the Latin on the hilt, eyes going wide as she translated it, "Whosoever pulleth this sword from this stone be king of all..." Oh God. Rupert, come see this!"

Giles headed over, grimoire under one arm, "Lara, is that what I think it is?"

"Excalibur." Lara sad breathlessly.

"The conjuration which channeled Arthur and Lancelot's spirits into those statues must have also brought Arthur's sword." Giles remarked.

Lara smiled as she stared at the blade.

"Uhm, I know that's probably a great educational find you have there, but we do have evil to fight?" Buffy mentioned

Lara shook her head, "You're right Buffy. Though, this may come in handy" and she handed the blade to Giles, "Keep this safe, won't you?"

Giles nodded as Buffy smiled, "Well, now that the Vampire Slayer has done her job, time to find out what a Tomb Raider does." Lara smiled back and the two made their way back up the steps.

"Interested, Slayer?" Lara challenged. A scream pierced the night, one that sounded much like a voice both women loved.

"BUFFY!!!!" Dawn cried. At that, the two women leapt into the entrance of the structure, and gazed into the haze and cobwebs.

"What's first?" Buffy asked as they crept down the hallway.

"The Breath of God. Only the penitent man shall pass," Lara said.

"So, should we pray?" Buffy inquired.

"Dr. Jones got through by kneeling, but I somehow don't think it will be that simple this time."

"What makes you say that?" Buffy quipped as she heard a loud crack. Looking straight ahead, she saw a bolt of lightning flash down the corridor straight for the girls. Without thinking, the Slayer shoved her friend to the ground, failing to notice the ornate glass mirror behind them.. The lightning struck the mirror and reflected off of it, sending sparks across the entire room. One of the sparks caught fire to the tapestry hanging on the wall. That's when Buffy saw it, the altar standing beneath a statue of a woman bearing a striking resemblance to Glory. Picking up a piece of the wooden frame from the mirror, Buffy wound the burning cloth around the stick and lit the candles beneath the statue. The fires glowed, and then the mirror returned to its former state. The glass faded, and a hallway emerged.

"Penance, I guess. Glory was never that bright." Buffy quipped.

Lara smiled. "Especially since in the Catholic Church, which she is obviously mocking, candles are lit at the altars of saints for remembrance or for favors, NEVER penance."

"Phase one complete?" Willow's voice echoed through Buffy's mind.

"Yes. Bring the other into the corridor. Go through the looking glass, metaphorically speaking." Buffy telepathically instructed her friend as she and Lara continued on their journey.

"Next step?" The Slayer asked.

"The Word of God." Lara recited. "Must follow in God's footsteps, but remember Jehovah begins with an I in Latin." Lara said. Buffy looked down to see the grand alphabet spread out among the bricks that lined the floor."

"No sweat." She began, and took a step towards the closest letter I. As she put her weight on it, the brick collapsed beneath her foot and the floor began to swallow her whole.

"What the hell is quicksand doing in Sunnydale!" she shouted as she began to sink. Remembering all the movies she had seen that used this particular trap, Buffy tried not to struggle. Lara, having figured out the change, leapt to the letter G and pulled the slayer up. Buffy scrambled to find footing, and did so on the letter L. "Of course," she sighed.

"It's not Jehovah this time," Lara started. "It's Glorificus."

"I always knew she was vain, but this goes beyond even what I thought." Buffy said as she tossed a bit of green powder into the air. The letters GLORIFICUS now glowed a bright emerald green as the task had been completed.

"Phase two finished, Will." Buffy thought. "Just follow the emerald city road."

The corridor the women were traveling down made a sharp right. At the end was a sight that made Buffy gasp.

A Large statue of King Richard the Lionhearted stood at the head of a yawning portal that Buffy recognized all too well.

Glory had started the ritual. But somehow, the creatures in hell were unable to break through. She and Lara could see them, pressing against a thin membrane that was keeping them locked inside. But the mystical energy roiled, spanning the distance between the statue and an ornate black door. Lara looked at Buffy, saw the fear in her eyes, and new something was wrong.

"What is it?" she asked.

"That's the portal." Buffy said. "The last time I leapt into that thing, it killed me."

Lara smiled. "But you didn't leap from the Lion's head, did you?" Buffy stared blankly at her friend, as the realization dawned on her. Lara's smirk widened. "Leap of Faith?"

"Leap of Faith." Buffy agreed, clasping Lara's hand. The two women climbed to the top of the lion's head and leapt into the night sky. They fell about three feet, and tumbled onto a solid surface. The portal was painted on a bridge, giving the illusion of being there, but not really. Lara tossed her rope about the statues head and whistled loudly. The rest of the gang were only a few steps behind them, and followed them down onto the path. As the crew reached the black door, Buffy stepped aside and allowed He-Man and She-Ra to the front. In unison, they pulled back and punched the door in. The onyx crumbled under the assault, revealing the sanctuary inside.

The walls were lined with goblet after goblet, each one ornate and beautiful, none of them the true grail. Seated on a throne up on a stone dais was Glorificus, wearing the Crown of Morganna the Misbegotten, with Dawn bound at her feet.

"Well it's about time." Glory said with a smile as she rapidly lifted Dawn's right arm into the air. In her left hand she held an ornate dagger and drew it across Dawn's bare skin. Blood slid down her arm and a few drops rained down into the Hellmouth. It began to glow a fierce silver color and pulse with mystical energy. Then suddenly, all hell broke loose

Literally.

**Chapter Twenty One**

"Here's where the fun begins!" Glory shouted as Dawn cried out in pain and anguish. Then, ice shot from Glory's eyes, but not at Lara or Buffy or any of the others. It impacted on the floor between them, each beam forming dozens of knights, each one made of gleaming ice. "Go my minions!" Glory shouted, waving her hands at Lara and Buffy, "Destroy them"

He-Man and She-Ra hefted their swords as they stood in front of Lara and Buffy. Lara whipped her guns out of their holsters. Buffy held her torch defensively. Behind them, the others readied themselves for the forthcoming battle.

As the nearest ice knight swung it's sword at He-Man, the hero ducked and rolled between it's legs, appearing behind it. With a crash, He-Ma's sword shattered the ice knight. She-Ra swept her sword in an arc, shattering several of the ice knights. Shards flew through the air and towards the back of the horde, reforming new knights.

Lara's guns blazed, shattering knight after knight. Soon, she was slipping the pistols back into their holsters, the gun's reloading. "Cover me!" she shouted as she slipped behind the group. With a roar, the wolfed out Oz slid into her place, claws slashing through knights.

Lara looked around the room, "Something awfully familiar about this place" and she saw above her, a stone obelisk, lying on it's side, suspended by a long chain, "Yes, something very familiar" Lara leaped into the air and landed on the obelisk and began rocking, making the obelisk swing. "Obviously, our enemy has no originality at all"

As the obelisk began to swing back and forth, Skeletor and Shadoweaver emerged from the shadows behind Glory's throne. "The portal is beginning to open" Shadoweaver hissed. Skeletor laughed and lowered his staff, aiming it at He-Man, "Take this you muscle bound oaf!" he shouted, a blast shooting into his hated foe.

He-Man grunted, having not seen the blast coming. "Brother!" She-Ra shouted as He-Man was frozen in place. She parried two ice blades which swung at He-Man, only to take a blow to her back from a third night. "Into the valley of death!" Xander shouted, katana swinging as he slipped up to guard She-Ra's back. His blade almost whistled through the air as he shattered ice knights. She-Ra swung again and again, but still the knights kept coming

"This is pointless! For every one we shatter" Buffy said, kicking a nearby knight into ice shards, "two more appear! We need a new tactic!"

Lara looked down from the now swinging obelisk, "Working on it as we speak" and suddenly the point of the obelisk struck a strategically placed gong in the ceiling. The noise it made filled the chamber and shattered all the knights at once.

"Nice move there hot pants. But it won't save you from my wrath!" Glory shouted at Lara. Ice shot out at the Tomb Raider, who leapt form the obelisk just in time and somersaulted through the air, landing on her feet, guns drawn again.

"Mreow, she is mine" Katra purred, lowering her mask and leaping form the shadows, a panther once again. She bowled into Lara, knocking her to the ground, guns skittering from her grasp and sliding across the floor. Oz howled and leaped at Katra.

"No you don't" Beastman growled, stepping between Katra and the leaping wolf that was Oz. With a powerful swing of his orange paw, he knocked the leaping wolf sideways into a pillar.

"Deus ex Lothica!" Willow shouted, raising her hand. Several shining orbs of red light streaked form her hand at Beastman, hitting him and knocking him across the room.

"Now, that's not really fair, is it?" Ethan said as he stepped into the light. He raised his right hand, "Ignatius!" and suddenly, a flaming ball of fire was in his hand. "Catch!" he shouted and hurled the fireball into the midst of the cluster of friends.

"Ignatius protectior!" Giles shouted, and suddenly a barrier appeared between him and the oncoming fireball. The ball of flame slammed into the shimmering red barrier and exploded harmlessly.

"Well, Rupert, so nice of you to join us" Ethan said with a smile.

Lara grappled with the panther's mouth. Katra struggled, but Lara was able to keep the jaws from closing on her vulnerable throat. Then, suddenly, Katra sailed across the room and squealed as she hit the wall, mask falling from her face, returning to her human form. She-Ra stood looking down on Lara, "Need a hand?" she asked.

Lara smiled as She-Ra helped her to her feet. She quickly surveyed the battle raging around her. Glory seemed to be above combat, sitting on her throne, holding the unconscious Dawn's arm, blood trickling down it. He-Man was busy locked in combat with Skeletor, sword clashing against staff. Oz was keeping Beastman busy, while Xander used his new sword to keep Katra at bay. Giles was trading magics with Ethan Rayne even as Willow was locked in a magical duel with Shadoweaver. Lara smiled, "Go help your brother. I got some business with the blonde there" Lara nodded at Glory even as Buffy began to make her way up the steps.

"Let my sister go you bleached blonde hussy" Buffy said, anger burning in her eyes.

"Or what? You'll kill me Slayer?" Ice flashed in Glory's eyes as she gloated.

Lara grabbed her pistols and took careful aim. One shot barked as she pulled the trigger. Her aim was true and the crown suddenly flew from Glory's head.

"No!" Glory shouted, releasing Dawn and leaping after the crown. Buffy leaped ahead fo her and threw Glory to the ground. "Not this time!" she shouted, as Glory flew across the room to land on the floor.

"I think this is where I make my exit" Ethan said, just before he teleported away

"You know, the human has a good idea," Skeletor said. He blocked yet another of He-Man's swings, even as She-Ra made her way over to the fight. He pressed a button on his wristband and suddenly, a hole was blasted in the roof of the temple. "You are on your own, Glorificus!" Skeletor shouted as several beams activated, removing Skeletor, Shadoweaver, Beastman, and Katra, from the field of battle.

"So, it looks like once again it comes down to you and me, Slayer." Glory said as she dropped Dawn's arm and faced off against Buffy." "Only this time, you don't have your big old hammer to beat me with." She looked around and smiled. "And this time, your over glorified bricklayer is too busy fighting others to nail me with a wrecking ball."

Buffy smiled as she looked Glory in the eye. "Don't need him. I mean, this time." She locked eyes with the Hellgod and continued. "See, Morganna, Glory, whatever the hell you want to be called this time, I've got a couple of surprises in store."

Glory smiled right back. "As do I." She shouted as she leapt over the portal. With a point of one finger, the seal burst and the denizens of her hell dimension began to pour out.

"Hell on Earth is always so much fun!" She laughed as she watched several demons crawl from the mystical energy. Xander leapt on them, his katana slicing through them like butter.

"And here's something for you, you little witch!" Glory shouted. With a raise of one arm, a figure shimmered into being. Her long light brown hair and full figure looked strikingly familiar to everyone. She opened her blue eyes and stared, helplessly frightened, around the room.

"Tara?!" Xander shouted as he continued taking down the demons. She whirled around, pointed a finger, and shouted something in Latin. Xander froze mid swing.

"She's in my power boy!" Glory practically giggled at the prospect. "Once I've swallowed a part of your brain, your soul belongs to me!"

Tara's hands glowed with magic. She took aim at She-Ra, and a ball of fire shot fourth towards the warrior woman..

"Sword to shield!" She-Ra shouted as she held her sword aloft. The light flashed and a brilliant silver shield replaced her sword. She-Ra ducked behind it, and the fireball exploded harmlessly.

"Will, I need those big guns now!" Buffy shouted as she reeled back and punched Glory in the nose, just for good measure."

"I'm sorry, Buffy." Willow's voice echoed throughout the chamber. As she looked around at her friends, all helplessly fighting off the forces of evil, Willow's hair changed from brilliant red to pitch black, her eyes black as night. She ran to the helpless Tara and grabbed her arm.

"ARDEMENTE!" Willow shouted, and Tara fell unconscious into her arms. Glory stared and shook her head.

"That's impossible!" she shouted, as blood began to pool under Tara's body from a hole in her chest.. "Her soul is mine! You can't take it from me!"

Willow strode up on the dais, the veins in her face clearly visible.

'Try me!"" She hissed, and opened her mouth wide. Several scorpions flew from her throat and attacked Glory, tangling themselves in her hair and overdramatic gown. Willow raised her hands, and the portal shimmered with a thin membrane holding it barely closed, like in the painting on the bridge.

"I can't hold this down for long! She shouted as Buffy began pummeling the distracted Glory with anything else could find. Willow shouted a command, and The Hammer of the Troll God appeared once again at her feet. Shouting a quick thanks, Buffy picked up the hammer and repeatedly slammed it into Glory's face. The hellgod fell to the ground, not necessarily dead, but definitely out of the fight for now.

The crowd watched as a ghostly spectre of Tara rose from the bloody corpse on the floor. She looked around the room, smiled, and rasped "I love you, Willow" as she rose from the ground and shimmerd into the night. Her body faded as well, leaving the friends and the unconcious Glory alone with the barely contained portal.

Dawn opened her eyes and looked around. "Oh no, not again!" She shouted. She started for the portal, and was caught by her sister.

"Dawnny, no!" Buffy shouted as she held the crying girl in her arms. Giles mounted the stairs quickly."

"Buffy, I have to!" she cried. "I can't let you die again, and only my blood stopping closes the door."

"Not this time!" Lara shouted gleefully from the ground near the portal. At her feet lay the crown.

"Hurry! Get it to Buffy! I can't hold this much longer!" Willow shouted as the light in the portal shimmied. Xander started towards Lara, but was intercepted by a large, cricket-like demon. Oz leapt into the fray, the two boys literally tearing it limb from limb.

"He-Man, She-Ra!" Lara shouted, trying to get their attention. But He-Man was still unconscious, and She-Ra was busy defending him from something that vaguely resembled the Creature from the Black Lagoon.

Giles was nowhere to be seen, and Buffy was holding her sister in her arms, both of them crying.

"Lara, Please!" Willow shouted, her voice getting deeper. "The dark magic is killing me!"

Lara felt it deep in her stomach, the need to place the crown on her own head. She didn't think it was the aspect of Morganna compelling her, for the single shot she had gotten in the crown had cracked the Ruby of Eternia. Suddenly it all made sense; her strange training regiments with Giles, her old English tutor; her curiosity about all things occult, her constant need to do the right thing.

She was a potential Slayer. She had the potential, should Buffy fall, to be the next Slayer.

And also the potential to use the crown.

Placing it on her head, Lara focused all of her energy on the portal. A beam of red magic shot out from the ruby. A great vacuum began tearing through the room, yet all of the hero's remained perfectly still. As the denizens of Hell were sucked back down into their dimension, the portal grew smaller and smaller, till it closed. The walls around them shifted back into place, returning to their former state of the new High School. Where the portal had been lay a huge crack in the earth that seemed to smile up at Lara. She could only guess that this was the Hellmouth. Willow collapsed to the ground, her hair still black as night. Oz, returning to his human self, rushed to her side and held her in his arms.

All that remained of this horrid night was the unconscious form of Glory.

Who wasn't unconscious anymore.

"You stupid girl!" she shouted as she rose to her feet and advanced on Buffy. "You've ruined everything!" She seemed to double in size, her true Hellgod stature finally manifesting itself on earth. "Well this time, lousy old Ben can't help you! There is no man to kill to destroy the god!"

Lara shouted, guns again in her hands, firing repeatedly, "Who needs a man to destroy a god?" The bullets seemed to be no more than pinpricks to Glory, but they annoyed her none the less. Buffy released Dawn and rushed to the attack. She-Ra turned, just as He-Man finally freed himself of Skeletor's beam. The two drew swords and advanced on Glory.

"Buffy, catch!" Xander shouted, the katana arching through the air to land hilt first in her hand. Now armed, Buffy smiled wickedly. "Time to finish this"

"Yes, it is. And like the annoying bugs you are, I will squash you all beneath my feet."

Buffy swung the katana, the blade slicing along Glory's descending foot. She-Ra and He-Man leaped over the Hellgod's bent knee, swords cutting with their inhuman strength. Lara took careful aim and placed an entire clip of bullets into one of Glory's eyes. While all this was going on, Giles methodically made his way towards the fight.

Glory spun around, foot arching out, catching both He-Man and She-Ra in the kick and sending them sprawling back down the steps. Several punches arched out and landed squarely on Buffy's stomach, doubling the Slayer over, the katana clattering to the ground. Lara swore, dropping her pistols back into their holsters, reloading the guns yet again.

"Your time is over, Glorificus," Giles said as he reached the top of the dais, an ancient sword gleaming in his hands.

Glory stared at the blade, "What you got there, Watcher boy?" her smile faded as she took in the weapon in Giles' hands. "Where did you get that sword?" she hissed.

Giles smiled, "You provided it for us when you channeled your brother's spirit outside."

"You lie!" she shouted. "Only a descendant of Uther and Igrane can carry that swords!"

"Unless I change the magic." An elderly voice boomed. Across the room, stood an old man, his white beard nearly to the floor, his robes gleaming light. "And I say than anyone with a noble heart whose cause is just and true can weild Excalibur, for he will be the true heir to Camelot's glory!"

The blade glowed green, and seemed to vibrate with energy. Guiles smiled as he raised the sword, which seemed to sing. Glory's eyes went wide as the blade swept down, "No!" she shouted as Excalibur descended through her neck, separating her head from her shoulders. There was a bright burst of red light as Glory's essence was forever destroyed.

As the light faded, Buffy surveyed the carnage, "Who are you?" She asked the stooped old man in the back, who was wheezing from the effort of his spell. His blue eyes twinkled with a youth that belied his age.

"An old friend." He said with a smile. "A friend of all the Champions of Light. " He reached out, and a warm breeze ruffled Buffy's hair. "Well done, my friends, well done." He vanished into the night, his voice echoing softly as he did so with the words, "Tell the Sorceress I love her."

Buffy took a look around the room. "Well, looks like we survived another apocalypse."

"What's that make now, about one a year?" Xander asked with a laugh.

'Seems about right." Willow whispered from her place on the ground, her eyes now again blue. "Though,this time it wasn't without more than a little help from our friends."

"Both old and new." Dawn chimed in.

Lara smiled, He-Man and She-Ra laughed heartily as did the rest of the group soon after. Buffy looked at Willow, whose hair had finally regained it's normal red color. "Let's go home everyone."

**Epilogue**

The days after the battle were ones of reconnecting with family and friends. The Humans had bid a fond farewell to their friends from Eternia and Etheria, as they had stepped through the portal from their world to Earth. A portal that would now remain open permanently.

"If you ever need us, just look in the mirror and call." Adora told Buffy as she hugged her tightly.

"You can count on that." She said as she hugged her back. Adam approached as his sister stepped into the glowing orb of golden light.

"Well, I guess this is goodbye." He said sheepishly as he looked at Buffy's face.

"I guess so." The Slayer said. Cute as he was, Adam was more than a little lacking in the words department.

"Buffy, there's something I've been wanting to ask you."

"What's that Adam?" He moved close, took her in his arms, and kissed her. As he pulled away, Buffy was left breathless.

"Never mind, I forget." He said as he stepped through into the portal which shrank behind him. Her mirror faded back to glass, and she headed downstairs where the rest of her friends were gathered.

A quick headcount revealed that Oz was missing.

"Where's Oz?" Buffy asked. Willow looked up from her tea, her eyes bright with tears.

"He left. Back to South America." She sighed. "He asked me to go with him, but I had to say no."

"Why?" Buffy asked. "I mean, now that you know Tara's in heaven and safe, aren't things easier?"

Willow nodded. "Yes, but all the energy I sucked up keeping the portal closed, I can still feel it inside of me. It's like I'm starting over from square one again. I need to serve time for what I did to Warren. I still feel the guilt, and that only makes the evil inside me grow."

"Then why don't you and Giles come with me back to England?" Lara asked. "I'm sure the Watchers Council is going to want to hear all about our newest findings in response to Glorificus, and there is a very strong coven of white witches that practice a few miles north of my house. I'm sure they would be more than willing to help you gain control over the magic."

Willow looked up in surprise. "You mean that?"

Lara smiled. "With all my heart." Giles touched Willow lightly on the shoulder. "I'll make the arrangements tonight."

"I guess that leaves you, me and Xander for the rest of the summer." Dawn piped up as she slurped the rest of her cereal off her spoon.

"Well, mainly you and Buffy" Xander said. "With Lara going back to England, I should really try and find Anya."

"So it's just you and me now?" Dawn asked. Buffy smiled as she sank into a chair next to her sister.

"I think we've earned a little time off. Besides, we can start on your training together."

"Really!" Dawn's eyes widened.

"Really." Buffy said as she pulled her sister to her and held her close.

When Lara Croft returned to England, she donated the crown and sword to England's Royal Museum. Today, children of England can visit the Crown of Morganna the Misbegotten and the Key to the Dimensions in their resting place, safely behind bullet proof glass, and guarded by the latest technological wonders. The crown sits mounted on a velvet pillow, the ruby in the center of the spider matching exactly the one in the hilt of the sword next to it. The key to destroying the evil that was Glorificus now waiting for the return of he who is it's true wielder. There, where all can see, unbeknownst to any save one Lady Lara Croft and a few American friends of hers, sits Excalibur, the Sword of Kings.

149


End file.
